Glass Walls
by Taeng
Summary: Fear is innate in everyone. It haunts our desires and dreams, latching hold of our souls, consuming them, clawing for freedom. For the Guardians of Childhood, they are about the realise that the devils are inside the walls.
1. They Are Coming

Welcome to my first Rise of the Guardians story. This takes place a few months after the events of the movie. Hope you all enjoy it.

Reviews and constructive criticism are highly appreciated.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Rise of the Guardians, they belong to William Joyce and Dreamworks Pictures.

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_**Glass Walls**_

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Night had fallen over the quiet Pennsylvanian town of Burgess. A light flurry of snow was falling, dusting the already fallen snow that had covered the entire town for the past week, ensuring that there would be another snow day for the children of the small town.

Peering from his bedroom window, an eight year old boy with chocolate-coloured hair and round hazel eyes sat in front of the window sill watching the world outside, dressed in blood red pyjamas with a dark, patchwork blanket covering his shoulders in an attempt to keep warm. Jamie Bennett stared with excitement at the falling flakes. He knew the cold weather was the result of Jack Frost, the Guardian of Joy and his friend. It had only been a few months since the attack by Pitch Black and Jamie's ever-faithful belief in the Guardians which had resulted in him being the first human to see Jack, the latest addition to the Guardians. That memory was still clear in his mind. It had been the best moment of his life and not only had he seen Jack, but he had also properly met North (or Father Christmas to most people), the Easter rabbit, the Sandman and the Tooth Fairy along with all of their helpers. Along with his friends, they had all helped to send Pitch Black back to where he belonged.

Following that fateful event, Jamie had worried that he would never get to see Jack or any of the Guardians again, but throughout the year, he had been delighted to find that Jack continued to visit, sometimes accompanied by the Tooth Fairy or a certain little fairy Jack referred to as Baby Tooth, though they usually visited at night time during their rounds to collect teeth. The Sandman, or Sandy as he found he liked to be called, had also dropped by for a visit once or twice whilst ensuring that the townspeople had peaceful, happy dreams. He had desperately wanted to see Father Christmas and the Easter Bunny again but Jack had told him that the two were too busy and while the young boy's heart had sunk, he knew that neither could drop what they were doing just to pay him a visit, especially Father Christmas since the festive season was only a few weeks away.

Jamie continued to stare out of the window. He still couldn't believe that the falling snow was all down to Jack. He couldn't understand how one person could be responsible for all of the cold and all of the snow across the world, but then again, he still couldn't fathom the idea of how Father Christmas was able to deliver millions of presents in one night. He had asked Jack this question a few times, but the Winter Spirit would only grin knowingly at him and tap his nose, saying that it was a secret – or magic. Of course it was magic. It couldn't possibly be anything else.

Placing his hand against the window, the young boy let out a sigh, his breath misting the glass. Even though he still saw Jack at least twice a week (more at the moment considering the constant snow) for awesome snowball fights and dare-devil sledging, he still missed the presence of his friend. What made it worse was the fact that because it was currently snowing, he knew that Jack was close by. He shook his head. Despite his young years, Jamie knew that he shouldn't be selfish. Jack had work. He was busy. He couldn't spend all of his time playing no matter how much Jamie wanted him to.

Behind him, he heard his bedroom door open. He quickly threw the dark blanket on his shoulders and over his head, sinking down to the ground, a smile adorning his face as quiet, light footsteps entered his room.

"Jamie?"

_Right on time,_ Jamie thought to himself with a smirk, recognising the voice of his little sister, Sophie. Carefully peeking from under his blanket, he could see the three year old standing in the doorway, dressed in a pale blue long-sleeved pyjama top with blue and white checkered bottoms, her unruly blonde hair sticking out in all directions as she clutched her favourite teddy bear to her chest. Half of her hair covered one of her eyes but the other was darting around the room, looking for her brother.

"Jamie?" she called again, stepping further into the room.

Quietly and as stealthily as he could, Jamie crawled over to his bed, towards the lit lamp on his bedside table. He resisted the urge to laugh as he turned the lamp off, flooding the room with darkness, the only light coming from the window and the ajar door. He held a hand to his mouth to stifle his snigger as he heard Sophie gasp in shock.

"Jamie?" Her voice was fearful. Where was her big brother? She could barely see anything and clutched her teddy closer to her.

Keeping low to the ground, Jamie crept to the edge of his bed. "So-ph-ie," he hissed, drawing out her name in a voice barely recognisable as his own. "So-ph-ie."

Her eyes wide, Sophie trembled. She didn't like that voice. "J-Jamie?" She took a step closer to her brother's bed. It had to be Jamie. There couldn't be anyone else in the room, could there?

Watching her footsteps by peering under his bed, a thought suddenly clutched the eight year old's mind and he grinned wildly. _Jack will definitely approve of this,_ he thought, lying on his front and pushing himself under his bed.

"J-Jamie, w-w-where are y-you?"

Sophie's back was to the bed as she looked around for him. This really was a perfect opportunity.

"Jamie isn't here anymore," the youngster hissed, once more resisting the urge to laugh as Sophie gasped loudly, spinning around. He had to admit that she was getting harder to scare. When he had first pretended to hide from her and hiss in a different voice, she had screamed and fled the room in tears. It seemed his sister was trying hard to be brave which was why this new idea of his was perfect. He was going to get her good.

"J-Jamie this n-n-not f-f-unny."

Smirking, Jamie reached out a grabbed Sophie's ankle, pulling her to the floor. "The Boogeyman's gonna eat you!" The child let out a scream of fear as she fell, her teddy falling from her hands.

"Mama!" Sophie screamed, tears cascading down her cheeks like a river. Her fingers scrapped at the carpet as she desperately tried to get away, Jamie trying to avoid her kicking feet. How was he supposed to explain a kick to the face?

"Uh oh." The boy gasped and quickly let go of his sister, pushing him out from under his bed, appearing on the side from which he had crawled. He was going to be in so much trouble if his mother found out he had been scaring Sophie again. "Shh, shh, Sophie." He quickly sat next to her, pulling her into his arms as he heard footsteps rush up the stairs.

The light to his bedroom was turned on, illuminating the room and momentarily blinding the boy. He blinked a couple of times before seeing his mother crouched down in front of them, a look of worry on her face.

"Sophie? Sophie what's wrong?" Mrs Bennett held out her arms and scooped up her daughter who was still sobbing uncontrollably. She looked around at Jamie, a questioning look in her eyes. "Jamie, what happened?"

"Uh, um… I think she had a bad dream," he stammered, not meeting his mother's gaze.

The elder Bennett didn't look convinced. She knew that over the past couple of months Jamie had taken to scary his sister with stories of Pitch Black, the Boogeyman. Caressing the back of her daughter's head in an effort to calm her, she spoke in a gentle voice, "Pitch Black doesn't exist, Sophie. Jamie just made him up to scare you."

Sophie's cries began to subside and with a stifling sob, she looked up at her mother. "B-but something under bed."

"Really?" Mrs Bennett peered back round her daughter, her eyes fixed on her eldest child.

"N-no, that must have been part of her dream," Jamie quickly replied, sensing how much trouble he was going to be in. "I was just watching the snow when I heard Sophie scream and come in here. Honest, mom."

Mrs Bennett still didn't look convinced. With a frown, she stood up, Sophie still in her arms. "I think I'll put Sophie to bed." She looked down at her son. "If I find out that you have been scaring her, then we'll be having big problems mister." She made to turn but Sophie cried, halting her in her tracks.

"Wanna stay wi' Jamie," the young child sobbed, turning in her mother's grasp and holding her hands out for her brother. She wanted to stay with him and make sure that he was still there.

"It's getting later, Sophie," Mrs Bennett replied. "You've had a scare and really should go back to bed."

"No! Wanna stay wi' Jamie!" She continued to squirm in her mother's grasp.

"Maybe she should stay with me for a bit, Mom," Jamie suggested. "She's still scared so I'll look after for a bit and put her to bed."

Mrs Bennett looked at him quizzically. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Jamie Bennett offering to look after his baby sister and put her to bed?" she mocked and Jamie nodded fiercely. But she wasn't convinced. "Okay mister, what's in it for you?"

Jamie held up his hands, his eyes wide with innocence as he tried to keep a straight face, a move he had learned from Jack in case he got into trouble. "Honest, Mom," he replied. "It's snowing which means tomorrow will be a snow day. There isn't anything else I want." That was true. Jamie lived for snow days. It was a day off school, after all, a day where he could spend from dusk until dawn throwing snowballs, building snowmen and sledging. It was his ideal world and nothing made him happier. Tormenting Sophie was a close second, not that he'd ever admit that.

Still frowning, Mrs Bennett placed Sophie on the floor and the youngster instantly ran over to her brother. "Fine, but make sure you put her to bed in half an hour."

Jamie raised a hand to his head, saluting his mother. "Roger," he said with a smile.

Laughing softly and shaking her head, Mrs Bennett left the two siblings and made her way back downstairs, leaving Jamie in charge of his sister.

With his mother out of the way, Jamie turned and jumped onto his bed, patting his blankets, beckoning Sophie to join him. The youngster shook her head, her unruly hair flying across her face.

"Come on, Soph. It's safe."

Sophie continued to shake her head. "Don't wanna. Something unner there." She pointed at the gap between the bed and floor.

Jamie shrugged his shoulders. "The Boogeyman's gotta live somewhere," he said nonchalantly.

Sophie's eyes snapped to her brother. "Mama says he don't es-ist."

Jamie snorted. "Of course he exists." Seeing that his sister still wasn't moving, he let out a sigh. "He won't hurt you though. He only goes after children who don't listen to their older siblings." He grinned slyly at her. "You better get up here quick Sophie."

Heeding his words and letting out a gasp of shock, the youngster ran across the room and jumped onto the bed, huddling next to her brother.

Jamie smiled. Even though she was becoming braver, she could still be so gullible, but that was a major perk of having a younger sister: she would believe anything that he said. Turning so that he was facing her, he patted her shoulder. "See Soph. The Boogeyman can't get you now."

Trembling slightly, the young child nodded. "But Mama say Boogeyman don't es-ist."

"Of course he does," Jamie happily once more told her, remember the incident a few short months ago, how he and his friends had helped Jack and the Guardians defeat Pitch Black. That event, along with being the first living person to be able to see, hear and believe in Jack was one of his most favourite memories. "Jack Frost, the Easter Bunny, Father Christmas, the Tooth Fairy, they all exist which means the Boogeyman exists too." He thought for a moment, wondering how many other spirits and mythological beings actually existed. Did all of them? He made a mental note to ask Jack next time he saw him.

Sophie shook her head once more. "But Mama say –"

"Mom just says that you won't get scared," Jamie replied, leaning over the edge of his bed and picking up the blanket he had discarded earlier. Draping it over his head and wrapping it around is body so that only his face could be barely seen, he leaned close to Sophie who leant back with round, fearful eyes. Her brother was scaring her. "But if you believe in the Boogeyman then he won't get you." He suddenly clapped his hands in front of her face, making her squeal and jump. Jamie laughed and chucked the blanket off himself, letting it land in a heap on the carpet once more. "But the Boogeyman's not scary, Soph." He thought back to when he had first encountered the illustrious Pitch Black. Back then the slim towering black-clad figure with greasy-looking black hair and yellow, pasty complexion had scared him at first – he was the Boogeyman after all, how could he have not been scared? – but all of the fear for him had disappeared the instant he knew that the Guardians were there to protect children like him from creatures such as the Boogeyman and the dark horses that had accompanied him. Knowing that there were beings like Jack and the Guardians who were ready to protect gave Jamie a sense of ease and relief, filling him with the knowledge that as long as there were beings to protect him, he had nothing to fear.

With a stretch, Jamie stood up, placing his feet on the carpet before reaching out for Sophie. "C'mon sis, we'd better get you to bed."

Sophie let out a yawn and allowed Jamie to pick her up. Carefully, the elder sibling carried his sister to her room, stopping half way so that she could pick the teddy bear she had dropped earlier in her fright, before placing her on her little bed, the bed that had once belonged to him. Once he had tucked her in, Jamie turned and stood in her doorway, ready to turn off the light.

"Ni' ni', Jamie," Sophie murmured, sleep beginning to overwhelm her.

Jamie smiled, knowing that the Sandman must be about. "Night, Soph," he replied. "Don't let the Boogeyman get you." He then turned off the light, flooding the room with darkness as he closed the door.

Sophie sat up, her eyes wide. She had listened to her brother's words. For the past few months he had been filling her head with stories about the Boogeyman and the Guardians, but despite Jamie saying that he wasn't scary, she couldn't stop images of a tall dark figure with lifeless eyes haunting her dreams. Unbeknownst, Jamie had teased her so much with his stories, hiding and distorted whispering that Sophie was sometimes too scared to go to sleep. She had an increasing dislike of the dark and every creak or bang would make her jump, her heart fluttering wildly in her little chest like a multitude of butterflies.

She heard a creak from the corner of her room and let out a gasp. The Boogeyman was in her room! She couldn't see him, but she knew he was there. Jamie had told her. Jamie had told her that the Boogeyman would always hide in the darkest areas, in corners, under beds, under cupboards, ready to strike out at unbelieving children.

There was another creak and she let out another gasp, spinning herself around. She wasn't afraid… she wasn't afraid.

The branches of the tree outside her window scrapped along the glass, like fingernails on a blackboard, and she cringed, trying to make herself as small as possible. Was that the Boogeyman outside her window, watching, ready to steal her away the minute she looked away? Was he clawing at her window, trying to get in?

Wrapping her small arms around her knees, the three year old gently rocked herself backwards and forwards. She want to call for her mother, but she knew her mother would tell her, as she had done countless times before, that she was being silly, that the Boogeyman didn't exist. But her mother didn't hear the things she heard or see the things she did and Jamie had told her that the Boogeyman was real and Jamie didn't lie.

If Jamie didn't lie, then all she had to do was believe in the Boogeyman. He couldn't hurt her then. The Boogeyman didn't go after children who believed in him, that's what Jamie had said and Jamie always told the truth.

Still rocking herself, she closed her eyes. The towering, black-robe imaging of the Boogeyman clouded her vision and she trembled. He was looking directly at her, his dark, hollow eyes fixed on her own. Around him was a swirling mass of black, some of which formed into snarling, neighing stallions, their eyes just as lifeless as their master's. Still trembling, the youngster swallowed, her voice quivering as she whispered, "I believe in the Boogeyman. I believe in the Boogeyman. I believe in the Boogeyman."

#

On the outskirts of the snow-clad town of Burgess sat a small forest, its towering cedar trees covered in a thick covering of snow, the green of the leaves barely visible. Past the snowy banks of the ice-covered pond and through a grove was a small clearing.

The clearing was silent. It was dark and gloomy, the silver moon casting a minute light on the area. No animals or birds could be heard. Nothing dared to venture to this area of the forest. Despite the vast size of the clearing, the area cast an eerie, cold feeling as if something evil loomed. If a being unknowingly stumbled upon the area, they would make a hasty retreat, feeling the presence of something that should not be spoken of, feeling as if something was watching them. The wildlife knew to stay clear.

"_I believe in the Boogeyman."_

The fearful, pleading whisper of a child's voice carried across the wind, through the trees and encircled the clearing, like a ghost searching for a home. The leaves on the further most branches of the surrounding trees appeared to shiver at the chill of the whisper that past them though no snow fell or movement could be seen.

There was a rumbling, the ground in the middle of clearing began to shake but the trees that outlined the area remained stoic and silent. The untouched snow began to crunch and give way, revealing the brown soil that lay beneath. The ground continued to tremble with increasing ferocity until a large crack appeared, stretching a meter wide, revealing a row of rotting wooden floorboards.

"_I believe in the Boogeyman."_

The voice echoed afresh as the ground began to give away, the crack increasing in diameter, revealing more of the rooting wood beneath which cracked, breaking apart to reveal a deep, dark crevice below. The stone and dirt surrounding the floorboards fell silently into the hole with pieces of debris.

"_I believe in the Boogeyman."_

A metallic framed bed complete with a ragged and holed brown blanket sprung from the ground, covering the hole and the ground ceased trembling as the child-like voice was carried away with the wind, scattering like the leaves of an autumn tree.

There was silence for the briefest of moments.

Then, from beneath the ground, a hollow laugh could be heard, increasing in volume, reverberating off of the stationary trees. From the crevice under the bed two sharp, yellow eyes appeared, staring out at the full silver moon, a menacing gleam in them.

The earth around the clearing stood eerily quiet.


	2. The Gathering Storm

"Whoohoo!"

Flying high above the frozen snow-covered ground, his arms outstretched as he caught the cold wind between his fingers, Jack Frost, the newest member of the legendary Guardians of Childhood, let the strong northern current carry him across the skies. Despite having done this for over three hundred years, it was still something Jack couldn't get enough of. The feeling of the cool wind between his fingers and the fact that he was flying, able to look down on the world below, well, there wasn't anything that could beat that.

It had been eight months since the winter spirit had been selected by the mighty yet distant Man in the Moon to become the fifth Guardian and, in all honestly, he didn't feel any different. Yeah it was great being believed in by an increasing amount of children, but he felt like he had been expecting more, better powers or something like that and felt slightly disappointed that a minute he had taken the vows to be a Guardian he hadn't been bestowed with any. But, for now, he was content with being believed in and not being alone anymore and the fact that he had his memories back was also a major bonus. For the first time since his death and transformation into a spirit, he actually had friends. While he still valued his freedom and spending time alone, he had to admit, it was nice to have people around him again, to have friends. While, at times, they were complete and utter pains with their crazy and eccentric ways they were, nonetheless, his friends.

Turning so that he was lying on his back, the clear blue sky reflecting in his ice-blue eyes, the young Guardian's mind reminisced about his fellow Guardians, reflecting on how the five of them were more than friends. Over the past couple of months, Jack had felt as if they all had become a lot closer turning more into a family then a group of friends; a family that, after a somewhat bumpy start what with Pitch and everything, had accepted him with open arms. A smile crossed his face. North was the father-figure of the group, taking control with his deep, booming voice, quickly dispersing arguments, be it between the elves or yetis or (and Jack's smile widened at the image) between Jack himself and Bunny. Bunny. Jack let out a snort as he thought about the 'kangaroo'. The Easter Bunny was like a disapproving uncle, so easy to upset and this was something that, along with snow days, Jack took great pleasure in accomplishing. All it took was one little word or phrase from the winter spirit and the overgrown rabbit would be spitting and foaming at the mouth in outrage. Jack let out a laugh, remembering the other week when he had _accidently_ froze Bunny's mouth to the cup he was drinking from. Jack, of course, hadn't been able to help it. He had been caught up in the moment, waving his arms and staff around when the next thing he knew, Bunny's cup was stuck to his face. Ha, the look on the overgrown rabbit's face had been priceless.

If Bunny was the disapproving uncle, then that made Sandy the cool uncle. Ever since he had been brought back by Jamie and his friends following his sudden death at the hands of Pitch (something Jack had blamed himself for for ages until Sandy had had enough of the moping and self-blame and had given Jack a stern talking to through the use of symbols, telling him that it hadn't been his fault and that there hadn't been anything anyone could have done to prevent it from happening), the two had become close, the sandman occasionally helping him prank the elves or Bunny, not that he ever took the blame. Jack had soon found out that Sandy was able to get out of almost all trouble completely. After all, with his innocent face, no one ever dared point the finger at the oldest of the Guardians. No, Jack was the more likely suspect and rather then put up a fight, Jack took it all in his stride.

And that brought him to Tooth. Tooth was the mother or sister figure of the group, depending on how you looked at it. There were her motherly instincts such as being more attune to people's feelings and how she cared so passionately for others and then there was also how she treated the mini fairies, ensuring that they knew what they were doing and that they were all alright. It was almost as if it was in her nature to put the feelings of others first. But, as well as her motherly aspect, she felt more like a sister to Jack with her hyper activeness and how she could ramble on about anything, through primarily teeth or Jack's teeth to be specific. And while, at times, it frustrated the hell out of him, he could never bring himself to be annoyed by her. That was another thing about Tooth, no matter what, she never annoyed him. She was just too good natured with her warm, adorning smile and her sparkling amethyst eyes that seemed to light up whenever she was holding a newly fallen tooth or near Jack, who found himself increasingly unable to not smile back whenever he felt her gaze on him.

Like Sandy, Jack had found that he had become close to Tooth as well, but for a different reason. Increasingly, he found himself meeting up with her, be it encountering her whilst she was collecting teeth from Burgess or him visiting her at the Tooth Palace whenever he got too bored of spending his days in the Arctic or Antarctica during the summer months, though even now he still found himself visiting the Tooth Fairy's home regularly despite being it being winter in the northern hemisphere. He had no idea why, out of all of the Guardians, it was her whom he visited most, maybe because unlike North and Bunnymund who were constantly compulsively busy in preparing for their respective holidays, she actually made time for him no matter how busy she was (and that was always).

During the time that the two spent together, they had discussed everything and nothing at all, often spending some of their time in what began as uncomfortable silence, but, as the two grew accustomed with each other, turned into a comfortable silence. It was almost as if they knew each other so well that words didn't need to be spoken. Also, Jack had come to discover how alike they both were. Originally he had just thought that she was a hyperactive, tooth-loving fairy who could talk forever, but the more time they spent together, he realised that it was a façade. Though she never directly told him, he could tell that deep down, Tooth was just as lonely as he was. When he had found this out, he had been greatly surprised; she was surrounded by little fairies after all but she could sense that they didn't give her the comfort or companionship she needed. She was alone in a sea of faces.

Turning onto his front, he let out a heavy sigh as he gazed upon the frozen earth beneath him. He always felt a pang on his heart whenever he thought about that. Someone as kind and spirited as she was wasn't supposed to be alone. He had been alone for three-hundred years so he knew exactly what it felt like, but Tooth had been a spirit for a lot longer and he could only guess that her loneliness must be a lot worse considering she was actually surrounded by others constantly. But at least she now had him for company and he had her.

Jack shook his head. What was he doing thinking about Tooth so much? That was something he had slowly found himself doing more and more. He hoped that Sandy wouldn't find out that his thoughts were beginning to constantly drift to the Tooth Fairy. He'd never hear the end of it. How had he even arrived at thinking about her?

Ah. Family. That was it. After three-hundred years he had a family again, a dysfunctional, exuberant family but a family nonetheless. It was a nice feeling to be included once more, though he knew it would never replace his original family. Following the defeat of Pitch, Tooth had allowed him to see the remainder of his memories and, along with his sister, he had seen his parents and the loving, fun memories that he had shared with them. After, he had pleaded with Tooth to allow him to see his sister's memories, to make sure that she had been alright after his death, but she had adamantly refused. They weren't his memories to see, she had told him, though he had seen the sorrow and pity in her amethyst eyes.

He closed his eyes briefly and shook his head. His thoughts were drifting back to her, again. What was the matter with him? Opening his eyes, a bright smile crossed his face and he spotted something on the horizon, his ice-blue eyes sparkling with glee. With a 'whoop', he swooped into a small town, soaring through the streets towards his destination, admiring his handiwork as he cast additional patches of ice across the ground and buildings, trying hard not to laugh as passing people slipped, but he couldn't stop the toothy, amused grin from appearing.

As the breeze carried him through the streets, his smile widened upon hearing one of his favourite sounds: the laughter of children having fun. Directing the wind in the direction of the sound, he soon arrived at the snow-covered park where a group of children were in the middle of a snowball fight. They had split into two teams, one on either side of the park, separated by two solid walls of snow, as if they had built forts.

Landing in a tree overlooking the battlefield, his feet creating a fresh, delicate pattern of ice on the thick branch, Jack tuned his ears, seeking out the laughter of a specific child and as soon as he heard the young boy's voice, he let out a snigger. Jumping into the air, the wind carried him over to one of the teams, silently landing behind the three crouched children, all of whom were dressed in thick winter coats with woolly scarves, gloves and wellie boots. Two also wore hats, one pink and woolly, the other a beige colour with a white fur trim, while the third had a crazy mass of dark hair which stuck up in all directions.

"So, who's winning?" he asked as soon as his bare feet touched the icy ground.

All three children gasped with surprise and there was a splatting sound as one of them dropped the snowball they had been about to throw. In unison, they slowly turned around, their eyes wide.

"J-Jack?" Jamie Bennett stammered as his eyes rested on the beaming Guardian. "Jack!" His face broke out into a smile as he rushed forward, wrapping his arms around Jack's waist.

The white-haired boy inwardly grimaced for the briefest of seconds. Moments of touch like this still took him by surprise, be it from Jamie or Tooth or, well, anyone, but he was slowly getting used to it. Smiling, Jack gently patted the eight-year old's shoulder. "You only saw me yesterday."

Pulling away, Jamie nodded. "I know." His cheeks had turned a reddish colour. From the cold or embarrassment, Jack couldn't tell.

"Hello Cupcake, Claude." Looking past Jamie, he waved at the youngster's two companions, both looking delighted at the fact that Jack had joined them. "So, who's winning?" he asked once more.

Cupcake frowned. "They are." She jabbed a pink-gloved finger in the direction of the other team.

"That's 'cos there's four of them," Claude pointed out, jumping slightly at the sound of a snowball hitting the wall behind him.

"We can't have that, can we?" Jack smiled and directed the head of his staff towards the ground. He moved it across the snow, snowballs suddenly appearing as the staff passed.

"Cool, thanks Jack!" Jamie beamed happily.

"No problem." He placed his hand on top of Jamie's head, feeling the soft fabric of the hat under his fingers and ruffling up the boy's hair, making his hat tilt to one side, covering his right eye.

Jamie squirmed with discomfort while Cupcake and Claude laughed at their friend, taking great pleasure in his distress.

A couple of snowballs shattered against the wall as a voice yelled, "Are you guys still playing or not?"

Straightening himself out, Jamie picked up one of the snowballs Jack had made and carefully tossed it in his hand. A menacing smile crossed his face. "Let's do this." And without further ado, he crawled to the edge of the wall before quickly standing up and throwing the ball of snow as powerfully as he could before ducking back down. They waited, listening to see if it would hit a human target. Unfortunately, they heard it hit the wall protecting the other team.

"Ha ha! Missed!"

Jamie groaned.

Claude tossed his own snowball in his hand. "Tsk. Pippa's so confident," he moaned as Cupcake threw her snowball over the wall.

Jamie nodded in agreement. "That's Pippa."

A thought suddenly crossed Jack's mind and he smile broadly. "I've got an idea," he informed them, picking up one of the snowballs. With three pairs of eyes watching him, Jack gently blew onto the ball of snow which sparkled a light blue colour. "Try this," he said, still smiling as he handed it to Jamie.

Jamie took it apprehensively, staring at it with tentative eyes. He looked up at Jack, who nodded reassuringly. Taking a breath, he stood up and threw the ball before ducking out of sight as a ball from the opposing team narrowly missed his head.

The four of them waited with abated breath. The three children were nervous while Jack looked positively excited, almost bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"Wait for it…" he murmured under his breath.

And then they heard it. A cry of "What the –?" followed by a loud splatting sound and Pippa's scream echoing across the park.

"Boo-yah!" Jack laughed as he swung his arm in triumph.

Jamie, Cupcake and Claude stared at each other for the briefest of moments before they too started laughing. The sound resonated across the park, silencing Pippa's scream.

Claude picked up another snowball. "Let's try this." He stood up, ready to throw but instead, he let out a gasp and took a step back. "P-P-Pippa." The laughter instantly died in the back of everyone's throats.

Jamie and Cupcake quickly scrambled to their feet as Claude dropped the ball, fear etched across the trio's faces. Jack had an amused look on his face.

In front of them stood Pippa, the other girl in Jamie's group of friends. A look of utter fury was on her face and it was easy to see why. Her face was wet with flecks of snow while both the rim of her trademark white, woolen hat and the collar of her pale green coat were saturated. "Jamie Bennett!" she growled.

Jamie visibly trembled. He raised a shaking hand. "J-J-J-Jack did it."

Pippa put her hands on her hips. "Jack? Jack who?"

Jack shuddered at this, his heart skipping a beat. Had she already forgotten him? Only yesterday they had all been building snowmen together.

However, his worries were soon put to rest as her wandering eyes settled on him and rounded with surprise. Her frown instantly replaced with a smile. "Jack!" In one swift move, she bounded over the wall and ran over to the winter spirit, pushing Jamie out of the way in the process.

"Sorry Pippa. Didn't mean to get you in the face," he apologised, though the smile never left his face.

The girl shook her head. "That's alright, but," she turned, rounding on the three friends, "you had _Jack Frost_ on your team. That's cheating! That isn't fair!"

"Yeah it is. Four against four," Jack quickly pointed out.

"What?" Pippa turned to him, confused. "Who told you that? It's only me, Monty and Caleb over there."

Jack continued to smile as he pointed at Jamie. Of course he had known that it had been three against three, but he just couldn't resist getting involved. He was the Guardian of Joy after all.

"Jamie Bennett!" Pippa picked up a snowball and chucked it directly into Jamie's face.

The young boy sputtered, wiping the freezing snow from his face. "N-no fair," he stammered, shaking from the sudden cold. "Claude's the one that said it."

Pippa turned back to Jack. "Bu you said –"

"Oops. My mistake." Jack held up his hands in his mock defence.

Pippa let out a sound that was between a frustrated groan and a scream before she started chucking snowballs as hard and fast as she could at Jamie and Claude, while Jack and Cupcake laughed. The slim girl soon had the two boys cowered at her feet, hands over their heads in a desperate attempt to protect themselves from the continuous onslaught of snow.

Still laughing heartedly, Jack back flipped, landing on the top of his staff, his balance perfect. "Why don't you go and get Monty and Caleb," he suggested to Cupcake. "We can have a big game then and I'm sure they'll want to see those two getting their asses kicked by Pippa."

Cupcake let out a gasp at the word 'asses', but Jack didn't notice as he turned back to watching Pippa and the two boys. The portly girl then nodded and took off across the snowy dunes to retrieve the remaining two members of the group. She arrived back a couple of minutes later, Pippa having finally calmed down, while Jamie and Claude were soaked with snow, their teeth chattering from the cold. Jack was still perched on top of his staff, grinning broadly. Upon seeing the state of their two friends, both Caleb and Monty had burst out laughing.

"I-i-it's n-n-ot f-f-f-funny," Claude scolded, but his teeth were chattering too much for the words to come out in an angry manner and this only caused his brother and friend to burst out into new fits of laughter.

"I-i-it's all J-J-Jack's f-f-fault," Jamie added, patting his cheeks in an attempt to get some of the feeling back.

Still laughing, Monty and Caleb turned to Jack who simply held up his hands and said, "I didn't do anything." A mischievous grin was on his face, telling the two boys that he did, in fact, play a role in what had happened. But neither of them cared who had been behind it. The fact that they had seen a magical snowball hit Pippa directly in her face and then that both Claude and Jamie had felt her wrath was more than enough for them.

Claude held a trembling out to his twin. "G-gimme y-your h-hat," he whimpered. His hair was flat against his head, weighed down by the snow and he looked almost unrecognisable.

Caleb looked aghast at this and clutched his red beanie firmly to his head. "No way." He shook his head. No way was he going to give his brother his favourite hat and get it soaked with snow.

Smiling, Monty adjusted his glasses. "So much for brotherly love."

Claude gritted his teeth.

"Let's start a new game. That'll warm everyone up," Jack suggested and upon hearing excited cries of agreement, he stood to his full height, about to jump off of his staff when something in the sky caught his attention and he paused. His pale eyes narrowing, he saw the wave of blue, pink and turquoise across the sky. It was the Northern Lights. His mouth opened slightly in surprise, feeling a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. North was summoning him, but why? It had to be important. North had told him that it was his way of summoning the Guardians which meant something must be happening. Something big. He frowned.

"Jack, what's wrong?" Jamie's voice cut through his thoughts.

"Sorry guys," he apologised, looking down at the group, "but I've got to go." He jumped off of his staff, landing on the snow-covered ground.

"Why?" Jamie whined unhappily. He hated seeing Jack leave and they had barely had any fun together today. "You only just got here."

The other five children shared Jamie's sentiments. They all looked at the winter spirit with round, pleading eyes, begging him not to go. Jack sighed. He hated saying no to them, but North was calling him. He had to go.

"Don't worry," he told them, smiling, "I'll be back before you know it." He allowed the wind to scoop him up and with a final farewell to the children, he headed off in the direction of the North Pole, becoming increasingly worried as to what was going on.

#

The North Pole was a bustle of activity. Toys of various shapes, sizes and types covered every surface with large, shaggy yetis bustling over them, adding the last minute detail before moving on to the next. Small elves weaved in between the yetis and workstations, the bells on their hats jingling merrily, through the tuneful sound could barely be heard over the commotion of toys being sorted and of the yetis mumbling and growling at each other.

North, also known as Nicholas or Father Christmas, strolled into the workshop, his thick arms swinging and his face set with determination. He was a man on a mission. He stopped at a station where a white-grey yeti was carefully finishing painting a plane a pale green colour. North frowned and raised a tattooed arm. "I do not like it. Paint it darker."

The yeti looked at him with his small beady eyes before back at the plane in his hand. It was the last one. He let out a groan and hung his head. He was going to have to repaint all of them!

North continued through the workshop, checking every single toy, giving nods and directions on where toys could be improved. He reminded the yetis that they had to hurry up. There were only a few more weeks until Christmas and there was still so much to do.

With one final glance, he checked that everything was going well before turning and pushing open the large wooden doors that led into the Globe Room. Stepping inside, the doors slamming shut behind him, he looked up at the enormous golden globe which blinked brightly with the millions of shining lights that signalled the believing children all over the world.

Looking around, he saw that Bunny was hunched in a corner of the room, carefully paining what looked like an Easter egg. North frowned.

"Bunny! Why you no paint train?" He pointed at the discarded, half finished wooden train at Bunny's feet.

At the sound of North's voice, Bunny had jumped, almost dropping the egg and knocking over the small paint pot. "Aah, ha ha. Y'see mate, Easter's coming up…" the humanoid-esqe grey bunny trailed off, picking up the pot before the paint could spill onto the floor.

"Yes, yes. But Christmas." North scolded. Christmas was much more important than Easter, it was a priority.

Bunny nodded and hastily pocketed the egg before picking up the half-finished train. Under North's stern glare, he quickly resumed his painting. Normally he would have put up more of a fight considering Easter was only three or four months after Christmas, but with the festive season so close, he knew better then to anger North.

North strolled across the room to where Sandy was floating a couple of inches above the ground – sleeping. Rolling his eyes, he nudged the golden sandman with his foot in an attempt to wake him up. It didn't work. "Sandy, wake up!" he yelled, nudging him once more.

Sandy's eyes shot open and behind him, North heard the sound of something being dropped before Bunny let out a curse word. The Guardian of Wonder closed his eyes and took a breath, praying that the giant rabbit hadn't just broken the train. Turning round, his frowned appeared once more as he saw Tooth fluttering in front of Bunny, obviously helping him with the train he had broken.

"Tooth, do not help. Bunny must fix. You too busy."

Tooth gasped and quickly turned around while Bunny shoved the train behind his back, out of North's sight. "I was just," she began, but stopped upon seeing the look on his face and she flew back to her own work station. Sandy also went back to his.

North resisted the urge to let out a groan. Christmas was only five weeks away! Sometimes he was sure that the Guardians were worse than the elves when it came to helping out. Sandy would keep falling asleep, Tooth would either be checking on her fairies or helping someone else instead of concentrating on her task while Bunny always ended up painting his eggs ready for his own holiday and Jack… wait, where was Jack?

As if on cue, the doors of the workshop burst open and two yetis appeared, one of them with brown and white fur had a firm hold on the missing Guardian while the second carried his staff. The yeti carrying Jack dumped him unceremoniously on the floor, growling to North that the young spirit had been caught sneaking in – again.

Jack frowned as he picked himself up off the floor, snatching his staff out of the other yeti's hands, resisting the urge to freeze the two. "It's not my fault you never actually told me how to get into this place," he muttered, scowling as he dusted himself off. He turned to the yeti that had carried him. "You didn't have to grip so hard, you know, Phil."

Phil let out a gruff-like sound as he rolled his eyes before storming out of the room, closely followed by the other yeti. The doors closed behind them.

"Jack Frost!" North's voice boomed with his deep Russian accent, despite being in close proximity to Jack.

"'Bout time you got here," Bunny grumbled, hopping over, leaving the broken train behind.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked, looking around the room. He spotted Sandy and gave him a wave. "Hey, Sandy."

The sandman smiled and waved back.

Jack turned back to Bunny. "I just got the summons, you stupid kangaroo."

"S-stupid kangaroo?!" Bunny stuttered. He was about to retort with some choice words when Tooth whizzed past him, quickly stopping in front of Jack.

"Hello, Jack," she said, a warm smile on her face, her bright eyes scanning his pale face.

"Uh, h-hi, Tooth," he replied, tripping over his words slightly. He mentally kicked himself. What was the matter with him? He was just saying 'hi' to her, something he did a lot, but her sudden presence had startled him somewhat.

"It's nice of you to join us," she continued, apparently not noticing Jack's stumbling.

"_Finally_," Bunny muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

Jack frowned. "I just got the summons." He paused. "How long have you guys been here?"

"A day or so," Tooth replied. "It's nearly Christmas which means all hands on deck. Hang on, what do you mean 'summons'?"

"The Northern Lights," Jack replied, becoming increasingly confused. "North told me he only used them if it was something important. I thought something had happened."

Tooth turned to North. "You used the Northern Lights? Why?" She wore a look of shock on her face.

North shrugged his large shoulders. "Seemed quickest."

"Quickest?!" Bunny cried, aghast. "But, but what about sending the yetis through a portal or, or sending me? We could have brought him back quicker."

North paused, his mouth open slightly. It appeared those ideas had never crossed his mind. "Yetis busy. You busy. Does not matter," he said, waving a hand, dismissing what Bunny had said. "Jack is here now. Can put him to work."

"W-work?" Jack felt his blood drain. "But I have other things to do."

North walked over and placed his hand firmly on Jack's shoulder. "World will be fine without snow for few days. Come, I have job for you."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What is going on?" He dug his heels into the ground as North began to drag him across the room to a workstation, but his efforts were futile as the large Russian was a lot stronger than him. He looked around for help, but the other three Guardians had retreated back to their work.

North stopped at a table covered with wooden nutcrackers in the shape of soldiers. "Jack, you paint," he instructed, placing a small paintbrush in the younger Guardian's hand. "Paint," he ordered, waving a hand at the nutcrackers.

Jack swallowed. He had never painted anything before. Resting his staff against the table, he picked up the nearest soldier and looked at the pallet on paint in front of him. Red, navy blue, brown, black. He sighed. Dull, boring colours. Feeling North's eyes on him, he dipped the tip of the brush into the red paint before placing the brush on the arm of the nutcracker and painted it red.

North nodded, satisfied and walked off, leaving Jack to work.

Sensing that he had gone, Jack looked across at Tooth who was closest to him. "Hey, Tooth."

She looked up at him quizzically.

"What's going on?"

She put down the doll she had been working on. "Every Christmas North forces us to help out," she told him.

"What? But what about your other jobs?"

Tooth shrugged her shoulders. "Bunny brings his work, even though he isn't supposed to and every hour or so, one of my fairies brings me an update." She glanced over at Sandy who was sorting out a pile of thick, leather bound books. "I don't really know about Sandy though." She looked back at him and gave him a small smile.

Jack let out a groan. "This is ridiculous. How long are we supposed to be here for anyway?"

The Tooth Fairy pursed her lips momentarily before replying. "Until Christmas."

Jack's jaw dropped. He was supposed to stay here and work until Christmas?! His heart began to beat wildly against his chest. He couldn't stay here for five weeks! He had to get out. He had to get out!

A petite hand on his shoulder made him jump and he turned to see Tooth hovering just behind him. She had a worried expression on her face.

"Are you alright?"

He slowly nodded. "I can't stay here for five weeks!"

She smiled brightly at him and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, feeling the coldness on her fingers. "He does let us out once in a while."

Her reassuring smile and touch seemed to having a calming effect on him and he felt his heart beat steady once more. That was the thing about Tooth, she was able to calm him down regardless.

Sensing that Jack was now alright, she said, "I'd better get back to it. North is in a bad mood as it is." She let out a soft giggle before fluttering back over to her station.

"Thank you," Jack called when she was halfway across. She turned and smiled brightly before nodding at him. He smiled back and she appeared to blush before quickly turning around. He unconsciously placed his hand on the part of his shoulder Tooth had touched. There was still a soft warmth radiating and while Jack usually hated the heat, he found Tooth's warmth natural and calming and it was surprised to have found that he didn't mind that sensation at all. His thoughts drifting back to the fairy once more, he sighed and looked back at the half painted soldier. What was he doing? He let out a groan and stretched back, looking up at the silvery moon above. It wasn't night yet but the moon was hovering directly above them. Maybe it was something it had always done, ready to call on the Guardians when needed.

As he looked up, a dark shadow crossed over the face of the moon for the briefest moment. Jack blinked and straightened up. _What was that?_ He rubbed his eyes. Maybe he was just seeing things, just a flicker of his imagination. Looking back across the room, his eyes rested on Sandy. The golden sandman was looking up at the moon, a worried look on his face which told Jack that he too had seen something. And it wasn't good.


	3. Call the Darkness Down

Jamie sat at the head of his bed, resting against the headboard, a dark blue dressing gown covered the upper part of his body with a blanket draped over his shoulders, as he stared longingly out of the window at the snow-covered landscape, hazily lit by a streetlamp, a steaming cup of hot chocolate between his small hands. The bedroom was dimly lit with an artificial yellow light from the lamp on the bedside table. It had long stopped snowing, the sky having turned to black a couple of hours ago, and Jamie dreaded the thought of going to school the next day. He knew there wasn't going to be a snow day. He had already heard the plough trucks go by, clearing the roads of snow and something told him that Jack wasn't going to be coming back that night, which meant no snow or ice.

Curling his fingers around the cup, grateful for the warmth that radiated off of it, the youngster let out a sigh. He was disappointed with how little he had seen Jack that day. Of course he was used to not seeing the winter spirit for days on end, especially during the summer months, but today had been a snow day and that usually meant that spending a vast majority of the day with Jack, having fun, building snowmen, sledging, having huge snowball fights like they were supposed to today, but instead he had been called away.

Pulling his pyjama-covered knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, making sure that he didn't spill any of his drink, Jamie let out another sigh and rested his chin on his knees. He knew he was being selfish, that Jack's role as a Guardian was more important than playing games, but maybe it was because he had become so accustomed to seeing Jack on an almost daily basis during winter that he felt the way he did.

He wondered what could be taking Jack so long. If the other Guardians had summoned him, then it had to be important, but what? From what he could tell from what Jack had told him, the Guardians didn't meet up that often since they were all incredibly busy and other than Jack, Jamie had only seen the Tooth Fairy and the Sandman because they had been in Burgess and Jack had dragged them down to say 'hello'. If they were all meeting up now, then it had to be because something was happening.

He thought back to when he had last seen all five of the together. It had been Easter, when they had all battled Pitch Black. That had been months ago. He couldn't imagine not seeing his friends for months on end. Didn't the Guardians ever get lonely? He shook his head. Of course not. Father Christmas had his yetis and elves while the Easter Bunny had those weird massive stone eggs and the Tooth Fairy had all of those little fairies. As for the Sandman, he had no idea but liked to think that he had at least someone out there and Jack had him and his friends, so no, the Guardians weren't alone. Plus they were probably too busy to even need friends. He shuddered at that, wondering what it was like to be alone. It was something he couldn't bare thinking about.

Instead, he wondered what it would be like to be a Guardian. What would he be? How would he become one? He liked the idea of being a spirit similar to Jack, being able to do what you wanted, bringing joy to children with the snow and resulting snow days and to just have fun in general. The other Guardians seemed to have jobs that took up a lot of their time and kept them busy whereas Jack's was mostly comprised of fun. Clutching his cup tighter between his fingers, he smiled. He liked the thought of that; being a Guardian of fun. He would have to ask Jack how he became a Guardian – something else to add to the list of never-ending questions he had for the winter spirit.

He took a sip of hot chocolate, feeling the warmth flow through him. That was the only downside to Jack bringing winter and snow with him – the cold. It wasn't too bad when he was outside and running around since adrenaline kept him warm, but now, he had to layer himself up with clothes and blankets in order to keep warm and that was with the heating on! But he knew that if it wasn't cold then there wouldn't be snow.

"Jamie."

The voice made the eight-year old jump, nearly spilling his drink. His brown eyes wide with surprise, he turned to see the silhouette of Sophie standing in the doorway. "What is it, Soph? You're supposed to be asleep."

Rubbing her eyes sleepily, the three-year old stepped tentatively into the room. "Can't 'eep."

Jamie sighed. She had been doing this a lot recently and rather than go to their mother, she kept coming to him.

"Wanna story."

He sighed again. Another thing she kept doing. If she didn't want to play, she wanted a story. He looked at the clock on his bedside table. It read 8:23. He let out a groan. Sophie was supposed to have been asleep ages ago. If their mother caught her in his room she would think he was keeping her up again. He looked across at his sister who was still rubbing her eyes. It was obvious that she was tired. "It's late, Soph," he told her. "You should go back to bed." He took another sip of hot chocolate. It was already cooling, losing its warmth.

She shook her head, her golden hair flying across her face. "Can't sleep. Wanna story." She yawned widely.

"Sophie, you're tired. Go to bed."

Sophie's lower lip trembled, her eyes welling with tears. "C-can't sleep. W-wanna story." Tears began to roll down her cheeks.

Jamie's eyes widened. She couldn't start crying. He would be in even more trouble. But she couldn't be in here, if their mother caught them… There was only one thing to do.

Swinging his legs off of the bed (being mindful of his drink), he stood up, shrugging the blanket off of his shoulders, and walk over to his sister, holding out his free hand. She looked at him, her green eyes portraying her confusion.

"Come on," he said to her, almost reluctantly. "I'll tell you a story in your room."

Sophie stared for a moment and wiped her eyes with the back of her petite hand before a grin crossed her face, showing her rows of pearly teeth, a couple of which had a faint yellow tinge on their tips. Jamie had tried to persuade her to brush them properly as soon as he saw the yellowing tips, but Sophie didn't listen. She was still a young child, not fully understanding the importance of cleaning her teeth. Jamie just hoped the Tooth Fairy wouldn't see them, though he knew she would give his sister a stern talking to, but he also knew that Sophie was slightly scared of the bird-like fairy. The memory of being shown those teeth covered with blood and gum still stuck to them still made her shiver. Taking her brother's hand, she allowed him to steer her out of his room and back into her own.

A dull orange light from the lamp posts outside illuminated a fraction of the room, through the open curtains, the shadow of the tree outside of her room blocked most of the light. Letting go of her hand so that he could turn her bedroom light on, Jamie blinked a couple of times, allowing his eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness. Next to him, Sophie let out another yawn and he hoped it wouldn't take too long for her to fall asleep.

Half dragging her across the room, he was glad to see that the blankets on her bed were askew, showing that she had at least made an attempt to go to sleep. Putting his half-empty cup on her bedside table, he picked his sister up and lay her down on her bed. Sophie squirmed, trying to make herself comfortable, but her pillow was cold. Jamie straightened out her blankets, pulling them up to cover her so that only her face and messy head of hair were showing. Sophie shivered. The blankets were freezing cold; it was like being dumped into a bucket of icy water. She shivered again and wrapped her arms tightly around her, trying to keep warm.

With his sister tucked in, Jamie sat on the floor and crossed his legs. He thought about reaching up for his drink but decided against it. It would be cold now and he needed warmth not something to make him colder then he already was. He let out a groan, feeling the coldness from the carpet seep into him and he clutched his dressing gown tighter to his small body, wishing he'd had the sense to bring his blanket with him. "You ready?"

Sophie rolled over so she was facing him and nodded. She nestled her head into her pillow.

Jamie glanced up at the ceiling, his gaze fixed on the glow-in-the-dark stars that were stuck up there as he thought of a good story. A smile crossed his young face as an idea struck him and he looked at Sophie, her visible eye watching him. "Ready?"

She nodded once more, snuggling into her bed. She loved listening to Jamie telling her stories.

Clearing his throat, he began. "Once upon a time in a magical land far far away there live a beautiful princess called Sophie." He knew it was a cheesy, childish beginning, but Sophie loved her fairy tales and princess stories. Usually, Jamie used her toys or himself to portray the characters and action, but since it was late, he diverted from doing so, instead he was going to tell the story as quickly as he could. It was the quickest way to get her to sleep. "She lived in a magical castle with her older brother, Prince Jamie and their mother, the Queen." He pause and looked at his sister, her eyes were watching him and she listened intently. "One day, whilst out in the forest, Princess Sophie came across an elegant young prince from the neighbouring kingdom. His name was Bunnymund." This was something else he had taken to doing, including the Guardians, especially the Easter Bunny since he knew that ever since her trip to his warren (something he found out about later and was still seriously jealous about), he had become her favourite and she loved it when he included him in the stories. Glancing at her, he could see that he eyes were lit up with the knowledge that the Easter Bunny was going to be in this story.

Shaking his head as his sister's silliness (forgetting how he too would excited whenever he saw Jack Frost), he continued, "Prince Bunnymund took the young princess to his kingdom, showing her the sights and wonders it had to offer. There were giant stone eggs that could move and rivers of creamy chocolate. Princess Sophie was in heaven. He took her to his castle and introduced her to his family; the mighty King North, the beautiful Princess Toothiana, the humble Lord Sandy and the hilarious trickster, Jack Frost." With another glance at his sister, he inwardly groaned. She was still awake. "Princess Sophie was allowed to stay at Bunnymund's castle and make friends." He paused upon seeing his little sister's eyes begin to roll, her eyelids fluttering. A smile crossed his face. She was nearly there. "Princess Sophie loved it at the castle. It was nice there and there was a lot for her to do. But, one day, a dark cloud covered the castle, darkness taking over. The evil Pitch Black, the Nightmare King, had arrived."

Sophie had fallen asleep, her eyes closed and her breathing soft and even, but Jamie didn't stop, he was getting to the best part of his story. He had to keep going.

"The kingdom was filled with fear, people's nightmares becoming a reality and Pitch loved it. It made him powerful. But there was a reason he had come to the kingdom. He wanted the Princess Sophie, to take her away and make him her bride." He cringed at this. The thought of people being in love and getting married made his stomach turn, but these things happened in fairy tales. "The kingdom was in trouble. The king became very ill because there was no wonder in the kingdom, Princess Toothiana was turned into a huge, black bird and Jack was turned into a statue. Sandy fell in an endless sleep, overcome by the fact that people's dreams became nightmares and Prince Bunnymund lost hope because of what Pitch was doing and he couldn't stop it."

He closed his eyes, picturing the world he had created. A smile crossed his face.

"Pitch Black became more powerful and he took Princess Sophie away. She screamed and begged for someone to save her. But he used his powers on her and she fell asleep, allowing him to take her to his dark castle. He locked her in a cage and she screamed and tried to claw herself free, but she couldn't. Pitch would laugh at her. She couldn't see him, it was always dark, but she could always hear him.

"Back in her home kingdom, Prince Jamie and the Queen heard about what happened and the heroic Prince Jamie set off to rescue his sister. Along the way, he met with Prince Bunnymund and together they headed towards Pitch's lair. They arrived at the large dark castle, full of cobwebs and scary black horses. Carefully they avoided the horses and crept into the castle, heading towards the dungeons, because that's where all prisoners are kept."

He couldn't stop now. He was too lost in his story.

"As they went deeper into the castle, they could someone saying the princess' name. 'Sophie… Sophie…' The air was cold but Prince Jamie and Prince Bunnymund continued on their quest. They arrived in a huge cavern. They could still hear Princess Sophie's name being called but they couldn't see anyone. Suddenly there was a flash of light!" he cried, getting carried away as he threw his arms in the air to add effect. Wincing as he realised he might have woken his sister; he peeked at her and saw, to his relief, that she was still asleep. He let out a breath and blinked. Sophie was asleep, why was he still telling the story? But he wanted to keep telling it. Even though it was his story, from his imagination, he still wanted to know how it would end: would they rescue Princess Sophie? Would Pitch be defeated? But what was the point if the person who was supposed to be listening to it was asleep?

With a groan, his joints stiff from having been sat down for so long, he stood up. He was going to finish his story in his bed. He shivered and rubbed his hands up and down his arms. He had been so lost in his story that he had forgotten how cold it was but now that he was back in reality, he was freezing. He was going to finish telling his story in his nice, warm bed. He nodded firmly. That's what he was going to do.

With one last stretch, he leaned over, checking that Sophie was actually asleep. Her breathing was steady and her eyeballs were moving beneath their lids, telling him that was asleep and dreaming. With a content smile, he quietly slipped out of her room, turning the light off as he went and closed the door, disappearing into his own room.

Sophie's eyes snapped open.

She had been awake the entire time. She had actually closed her eyes so that she could imagine the world and characters in the story. While she had been enjoying the story, she had, however, allowed her imagination to run wild and now her mind was filled of imagines of being trapped and of her name being hissed as she was surrounded by darkness. The image of Pitch Black, the man who haunted her dreams constantly flitted in her mind, the way his thin lips stretched across his face as he sneered at her, the pale waxiness of his skin as he held onto her and his cold, hollow and empty eyes. She trembled beneath her blankets and clutched them closer to her. Why did Jamie have to leave? She wanted to go and get him, bring him back and scare the nightmares away but he would angry with her since she had pretended to be asleep. She didn't want Jamie to be angry with her.

She thought about calling for her mother, but she couldn't do that either. She would have to say why she couldn't sleep and she couldn't say it was because of nightmares. Mother would blame Jamie for telling her stories. It had happened before and she didn't want Jamie to be angry with her.

_Squeeaak_…

She jumped, a small gasp escaping from her lips as fingers scrapped the glass of her window. Cautiously peering over the top of her blankets, her eyes flickered over to her window. Her eyes widened and she let out another gasp, diving beneath her blankets, making sure that they were completely covering her. Someone was outside of her window.

Someone was outside of her window!

_Squeeeaak_…

She trembled, her entire body shaking and she held onto her blanket as securely and firmly as she could. There was a figure standing outside of her window. It didn't look like a man or a woman. She could only see the dark silhouette of a figure, hunched over with a long, narrow face, almost like that of a lizard and a long, raised curved hand with long thin fingers that clawed at her window, trying to get in. Trying to get to her.

She closed her eyes as tightly as she could. Why did mama have to forget to close the curtains?

Her grip on the blanket tightened, her blunt, bitten nails digging into the woolly fabric. She could still hear the scratching on her window.

_Squeeaak_…

"Go away," she muttered, her voice a low whimper. "Go away. Go away. Go away. Go away."

Her eyes stung, brimming with salty tears as her fear latched hold of her. Why did Jamie have to tell her scary stories?

The image of Pitch Black, the Boogeyman, entered her mind and she let out a whine, biting back a scream. She couldn't scream, mama and Jamie couldn't know. She couldn't open her eyes in case the figure outside saw her but she couldn't keep them closed as Pitch inched closer to her, his pale hands reaching to grab hold of her and take her away.

_Creak_…

Her heart beat wildly against her chest as she let out a gasp, her eyes flickering open despite herself. A tear rolled down her cheek. There was someone in her room.

Her eyes darted around as her ears strained, trying to pick up any piece of sound. Under the blankets, she could only see the blackness, but the scratching had stopped. It had stopped! But that only meant one thing: whatever was outside was now inside her room! Her entire body trembled violently like a solitary leaf in a ferocious wind, her heart beating so quickly that it was almost painful. She wanted to cry out, but that would alert whoever was in the room to her presence.

_Creak_…

A sob escaped her lips almost instantly and she quickly shut her eyes.

_Creak_…

It had heard her!

Gritting her teeth together in a desperate attempt to stop herself from making a sound, she shuffled as low down in her bed as she could, wrapping herself into a tight ball, making herself as small as possible. She wasn't there. He couldn't see her. She was invisible.

"I'm not here… I'm not here… He can't see me… He can't see me…" she whispered, try to console and comfort herself. She was safe. He couldn't see her. She was safe.

In her mind, she could still see the looming figure of Pitch Black, his hands still outstretched, reaching for her, a vile smirk across his face as his yellow eyes gleamed. She clenched her eyes even tighter together. She tried to force images of things she liked, fairies, flowers, princesses, Jamie, Bunny… The Easter Rabbit, he would save her. The six-foot grey rabbit appeared in front of Pitch, who was still the taller of the two, a smirk still adorning his pasty grey lips. Bunny unsheathed one of his boomerangs, holding ready as he took up a stance, his ears folded back, ready to protect Sophie. His grip on the boomerang tightened.

Without knowing it, Sophie's imaginings turned into her dreams as sleep consumed her, the mystery monster forgotten. Her breathing evened and her grip on her blankets loosened as the power of the dream sand proved too strong.

As the youngster slept, dreaming of Prince Bunnymund protecting her from the evil Nightmare King, a long, thin hand with dull grey, pasty skin hovered over the bundle of blankets where she slept.

From the shadows, a pair of dull, yellow eyes blinked before their owner took a step forward, his hand still resting over the place where Sophie lay. The towering figure of Pitch Black, dressed in his long black robe with his black hair slicked back, looked down at the sleeping child, a smile crossing his lips. "You really think you can keep the nightmares at bay?" His voice was chastising as he spoke. He smirked and with a flick of his slender wrist, golden sand wisped from under the blankets, forming into the shape of Bunnymund, dressed in regal attire with one of his boomerangs in his paw.

Pitch let out a hollow laugh. "The Easter Bunny?" he questioned, though the tone of his voice conveyed his amusement. Both the image of the oversized rabbit and the fact that he was dressed in princely clothes brought mirth to his eyes. It was just too funny. The idea that the Easter Bunny, dressed in the clothes of a bygone age, could actually protect her was almost too much for him. Such a foolish child.

But, there was something, a reason, that had brought him to her side. Looking down at the bundle, he wasn't surprised that she had unleashed him. Her fear and belief had seen him free of his prison and for that he was grateful. But, at the same time, he despised the fact that the only reason he had released was because someone _believed_ in him. That made him like _them_. Like the Guardians. That their power only came from being believed in. No. He wasn't like them. He wasn't anything like them. Their need to be believed in made them weak, they could only function if they were believed in and they craved it, but he was different. He knew that while he was imprisoned no one believed or feared him but, rather than pine away in the face of his defeat, he had made himself stronger.

A sour expression crossed his face as his eyes rested on the golden figure of the Easter Bunny. He hated them. The Guardians and their believers. If it hadn't been for them and those stupid, foolish children, then he would have won. The Guardians had been powerless and the Sandman dead but because of Jack Frost and that one remaining believer all of his plans had been scuppered and he had been defeated, trapped in a well of his own fears.

However, rather than let his fears consume him as others would have done, he realised he had nothing to fear. Sure he wasn't believed in and no one feared him (after all what was the pointing in believing in something that wasn't there to carry out the threats?), but over time, he came to realise that he still had power. The continued existence of his NightMares proved that. He created them, so he wasn't scared of them. He was their master.

But then he had heard that child's voice carried over the wind, beckoning to him. He had clearly heard the fear in the child's voice as she said his name repeatedly. Not only did the girl believe in him, she was scared of him right down to her core and it gave him a new lease of life. He brought the child's fear into himself, manifesting it and turning it into power, his power. It made him stronger and he was able to free himself from the prison after so many long months.

He had tracked the girl down and he could see why she was so terrified of him; the stories her brother told and the tricks he played had manifested into an unpronounced fear of him and he relished in it. He hadn't felt someone be this terrified of him since the Dark Ages.

Lurking in the shadows of the girl's room, he had watched as the boy told stories and played pranks on his sister throughout the day, always having the Boogeyman as the villain. A smile had crossed Pitch's face at this, watching the boy weakly pretend to be him as he scared her, leaving her with nightmares. There was a reason he was also named the Nightmare King. And the way she had cowered from the scratching of the tree's branches against her window, hiding as if there was a monster in her room, his smile widened, stretching across his face sadistically, her fears and nightmares had latched a hold of her young mind. It was so perfect.

With a curved flick of his wrist, a trail of black sand appeared. He waved it over the sleeping child and watched happily as the black sand perfectly created a form of himself next to the golden one of the Easter Bunny. He watched as the bundle beneath the blankets squirmed uncomfortably, signalling that horrors were forming in what had been a pleasant dream. With another flick of his wrist, a tall scythe with a long curved blade appeared in the 'nightmare' Pitch's hands and, in one swift movement, a smile adorning both Pitch's faces, the scythe swung in the direction of the regally dressed Easter Bunny. Sophie let out a staggered sob as the head of the Easter Bunny slowly fell from its body, disappearing in a spray of golden sand, the body then crumpling and also disappearing. Satisfied with his achievement as Sophie continued to toss and turn, a whimper escaping her sleeping lips, Pitch waved his hand a finally time and the 'nightmare' Pitch disappeared into a stream of black sand before drifting down into Sophie, taking over her dreams. This was something that he had perfected during his imprisonment. While before, he had only been able to turn dreams into nightmares, now he was able to make his nightmare sand take control of the child's dreams, dictating what happens.

He was hoping to make living dreams a nightmare as well and he while he thought he was close to it, he still had yet to test it out. Since he hated the daylight (he had stayed tucked deep in the shadows during the day as he watched Sophie), he hadn't tried it on someone who was awake. He could have used it out on the girl's brother, but he didn't just want children to be afraid, he wanted to be feared by adults as well. _Soon_, he thought. _Very soon_.

With one final look at the squirming, whimpering child, he decided to take a look around her room, curious as to why she had been dream of the Easter Bunny. She hadn't been present those few months ago when the Guardians and those idiotic children had temporarily defeated him, so how did she know exactly what the Easter Bunny looked like?

Striding across the room, his steps long and precise, the wall opposite the bed caught his attention. Stepping closer, he noticed it was covered with pieces of scrap paper each of which held a crudely drawn picture. From the way the stick figures had been drawn with thick colouring pencils, it was obvious they had been drawn by a very young child. Leaning closer with curiosity, he observed with disgust, that the pictures the child had drawn were of the five Guardians. He could see the colourful fairy with a little girl holding a tooth, obviously the Tooth Fairy, while another picture bore that of a little golden man, while another portrayed a snowy landscape with, what he assumed was, Jack Frost next to two smiling children, one boy and one girl. He also recognised Father Christmas and the Easter Rabbit in others. Taking a step back, he realised that the Guardians were in all of the pictures. He resisted the urge to spit at the pictures in anger. He frowned, looking back at the nightmare-filled child. Who was she? How did she know exactly what the Guardians looked like?

He headed back towards the girl's bed, looking at her bedside table. Usually children had trinkets and personal items on their bedside tables for comfort. Next to the lamp was a half-drunk cup of what looked like hot chocolate and a scrawny, tatty teddy bear. _Such a child_, he thought with a snort. Just behind the bear was what he was looking for – a photograph. He bent his thin frame over so that he could look at it closer. The picture was of the girl and her brother, standing out in the snow. His eyes rested on the face of the boy. He looked so familiar, but why? He looked back at the drawings before looking back at the photograph. What was the connection? Why did that boy look familiar? Why? Why? Wh–? He paused, momentarily frozen. His yellow eyes widened, his mouth falling open in surprise as he straightened up. _Of course!_ He knew he recognised the girl's brother. How had he not realised sooner? Taking a step back, closing his mouth firmly so that his jaw was set, he let out a growl. It all made sense now.

The boy in the picture, he had been there when he had been defeated. That was how the girl knew what the Guardians looked like. If her brother was a believer, then that meant she was too and had seen them. But it was more than that. That boy wasn't just a believer, he had been the last light!

Sinking back into the shadows, a malicious grin on his face, Pitch Black had the perfect way to get back at the Guardians. He disappeared into the ground in a trail of black sand, the smile still plastered on his face, leaving behind a crying and withering Sophie in the darkness.


	4. Blurred Lines

**Apologies for the slight lateness with this chapter, but I've been quite busy. So enjoy this chapter and, as always, reviews are deeply appreciated.**

* * *

Jack felt like he was suffocating.

He and the other Guardians had been trapped at the North Pole for what felt like forever. He had been making and painting toys for days on end with barely any rest and he hadn't taken a foot outside the building since his arrival. It was too warm and homely. He felt like he was melting. He needed the cold. He needed to get outside in the snow and icy air. He needed to breathe. He had been trapped inside for too long. He needed to get back out into the cold. He had tried sneaking out, but the yetis had caught him and he found that he was barely able to create any ice or snow, making his escapes increasingly impossible. He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't take the confinement any longer. He couldn't breathe. He needed to get out. He had to get out. He had to get –

"Jack? Jack are you alright?"

Tooth's concerned voice cut through his increasingly panicky thoughts and he turned his head, his light blue eyes meeting her amethyst ones. She was hovering close to him, a worried look on her face.

"Are you alright?" she asked once more, leaning in closer, her eyes watching him carefully.

He stared for a moment before leaning in closer to her, their heads almost touching. His breath was hitched and his eyes darted from side to side. She unconsciously retreated away from him slightly, startled by their sudden close proximity, but also because of how he was acting. She had never seen him like this before and it deeply concerned her. It was almost as if he were possessed.

"Jack…" she began hesitantly.

"I need to get out," he whispered to her, his voice hushed. His eyes continued to dart around, his pupils dilated, as if searching for a way out. "I can't stay here, Tooth. I need to get out." He lunged forward, grabbing her petite shoulders, almost shaking her. "Tooth, I need to get out!"

Tooth let out a gasp as she felt his hands grab her and she felt an additional flutter of her heart as she realised that _Jack Frost_ was actually touching her. She would have revelled in the moment if she hadn't noticed the unnatural tepid feeling of his hands, deprived of their usual coldness. He did need to get out but she needed to get him to calm down first. She had never seen him act like this before and it unnerved her. "Jack," she said softly, her wings fluttering as she placed her own hands on his shoulders. Her eyes widened. His shoulders were as warm as his hands. There was definitely something wrong with him. "Jack, you need to calm down."

"Calm down? Calm down?! I can't stay here, Tooth. I need to get out."

"I know you do," she said, keeping a firm grip on his shoulders, an attempt at keeping him stable, "and I'll help you, but you need to calm down." She kept her eyes fixed on his, despite the fact his blue orbs were still dancing in their sockets. There was definitely something wrong with him. She wanted to look around, try and find one of the others for help but they had gone to see North.

Jack looked at her, his panic abating minutely as he fixed his wild eyes on her concerned ones. "You'll help me?" He focused on her, on her concerned face as her calming tone brought back to reality. His panic subsided even more.

She nodded. "Of course." She placed the back of one of her hands against his forehead, making him flinch at the gesture though she ignored it, and almost jumped herself. His skin was clammy. Her eyes squinted slightly with confusion. Guardians and spirits don't get sick. "What is wrong?" she mumbled to herself, her hand dropping to her side.

Jack, however, heard her. "I don't like being confined for so long. I just need to get out for a little bit."

She nodded again and her eyes flickered over towards the enormous roaring fire on the opposite side of the room. Her eyes widened. _Of course_. It wasn't just the confinement, but the warmth. It wouldn't bother her, Sandy or Bunny, but Jack was a winter spirit. He needed the cold. Though, she was surprised that it had only taken such a short amount of time being deprived of snow for him to end up like this. She looked around for Sandy, Bunny or North, but none of them had returned yet. She swallowed and looked back at Jack. She was going to have to get him outside on her own.

With a breath, she moved the hand that was on his shoulder down his arm and clasped his wrist, a shiver rustling her feathers slightly from the movement. "Come on," she said softly to him. "Let's get you outside." With a gentle tug of his wrist, she pulled him forward, leading him towards the door to the workshop.

Jack followed her slowly, his feet stumbling slightly. Despite not panicking as much now, he found it hard to concentrate and felt almost disconnected from his body, as he were watching through someone else's eyes. But he couldn't tell if it was from the uncomfortable, sweltering heat or from Tooth's presence. He hadn't failed to miss the fact that she had hold of his wrist and was pulling him forward despite his confused state.

Feeling his hesitant steps, Tooth pulled harder in an attempt to make him walk faster. She needed to get him out into the snow as quickly as possible. "Jack, come on," she moaned. She knew it would be quicker if she just picked him up and flew him out, but she doubted that, despite his slim stature, she would be able to hold him and Jack was in no condition to fly himself outside.

She was inches from the large wooden doors that led to the workshop when they were suddenly thrust open, a disgruntled Bunny bursting in blindly, followed by Sandy who had an unreadable look on his face. Bunny stormed past Tooth and Jack, sitting himself back at his workstation and slammed his head against the wood, rattling the various things that were already on there.

Tooth looked over at him, forgetting for a moment that she was in the middle of dragging Jack outside, wondering what could have happened. She was brought back when she felt Sandy lightly tug on her foot, which was hovering at the same height as his shoulder. She looked down at him and he pointed up at Jack, who was looking around with a confused expression as to what was going on. "Oh," she said, "I need to get him outside. It's too warm in here and he needs to cold." Her words came out quickly and she stopped herself from saying too much. Getting Jack outside was more important.

Sandy peered around her so that he could get a look at the winter spirit, noticing how Tooth had a hold of his wrist as he did so before looking back at the Tooth Fairy, a knowing gleam in his eyes and a small smile of his face. He knew all about her overwhelming fascination with Jack and how much she liked him since he had seen the quick glances she would cast at him and how she always lit up more than usual when he was around. It was obvious how much she liked him even though everyone else seemed to be oblivious to this, but then again, they usually didn't see what he did. He looked up at her.

Tooth let out a disgruntled breath and rolled her eyes. "It's not what you think," she muttered to him, hoping that Jack wouldn't hear, though she couldn't stop the faint blush from tinting her cheeks, knowing the implications of the Sandman's expression. "He's not well. His skin is really clammy. He needs to get outside into the cold." She could still feel the unnatural warmth radiating off of him.

Sandy continued to look up at him, not overly convinced by her words.

"I'm not kidding, Sandy," she all but moaned. She seriously needed to get him outside.

Without Tooth's attention focused on him, Jack began to feel the heat penetrated deeply into his body once more, making him feel like he was on fire, the cool breeze coming from her rapidly beating wings wasn't enough to avert it and the panic began to consume him once more. Why had Tooth stopped? Why weren't they going outside? The heat was becoming unbearable once more and his breathing began to hitch in his throat. He needed to get outside. His vision began to sway gently from side to side. Why was he on a boat? Since when had North put a boat in there? "T-Tooth…" he stammered, his voice faint. He tried jerking his wrist in an attempt to regain her attention, but the movement made him feel dizzy, the world suddenly spinning at an increased pace. "T-Tooth…" He tried to steady himself, but the heat was becoming too much, his body feeling like it was on fire.

Sandy peered around the fairy once more and his eyes widened as he saw the winter spirit begin to sway. Tooth was still talking with a stream of quick words, oblivious to Jack's predicament. He tugged on her foot, but she didn't notice it and he looked around, trying to find something to bring her back to the current situation. Inwardly he groaned. Why was there never an elf around when he needed one? He tried clapping his hands, but the sound could barely be heard over her chatter. He needed to think of something and quick as Jack's swaying amplified.

Jack could barely see. His vision was one massive blur that was becoming increasingly consumed by darkness. The heat was continuing to pound through his veins like lava. He had to get outside.

With a frustrated huff, Sandy levitated himself up so that he was eye to eye with the Tooth Fairy. He placed his small golden hands either side of her face, cupping it and held her head still so that she was looking directly at him.

"Sandy, what? What?" The fairy was startled by the Sandman's movement and looked at him, confused as to why he was looking at her so sternly. "What's wrong?"

Sandy resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her. In all of her yabbering she had forgotten all about Jack. He tilted his head in the winter spirit's direction.

Tooth followed his gaze, turning her head. Her eyes widened and she let out a gasp. "Jack!"

The young Guardian let out a groan as he toppled forward, directly into Tooth who, because she was still facing away from him, was unable to hold him up and he fell to the floor, taking her with him. The pair landed on the ground with a thud, Jack's staff clattering loudly against the wooden surface and Sandy quickly tried to pull Jack off of Tooth whilst also signalling to Bunny that he needed help.

The Easter Bunny, who was still sat at his workstation across the room with his head in his hands, looked up upon hearing the thud. He rolled his eyes and scoffed upon seeing that Jack had fallen on top of Tooth. Obviously the youngster was messing about and this time had had the audacity to drag Tooth into his ridiculous antics. Couldn't that boy take anything seriously? He was shaking his head in disbelief when a glimmer of gold caught his eye and he looked back across the room to see that Jack was still on top of Tooth while Sandy was beckoning to him as he tried to futilely push Jack off, a panicked looked in his eyes.

Rolling his eyes once more with the fact that even Sandy was getting involved, Bunny stood up and hopped over to the trio. It was against his better judgement to do so, but he was curious as to why neither Jack nor Tooth were getting up and why Sandy was looking so panicky. "Bloody show pony," he muttered before calling across to Sandy, "Mate, this had better be good." He folded his arms across his chest, not looking the least bit impressed.

Sandy shook his head then paused and nodded, unsure as to what the right response was – it wasn't good because Jack had fainted but it was good because it was important. He pointed down at Jack.

Bunny shrugged his shoulders. "What is Frosty doin'? Get up ya lazy ingrate!"

Sandy shook his head. Above his head, he conjured the golden image of Jack fainting, but to Bunny, it just looked like Jack had fallen.

"I can see that Frosty fell over."

The little Sandman shook his head again. How could he get Bunny to understand that Jack wasn't messy about?

"B-Bunny," the voice of Tooth gasped from beneath Jack.

"Tooth, you and Jack need to stop messy about and get up," Bunny chastised her.

"I-I can't. Jack's not well. He needs to get outside quickly," she groaned. She could barely move. The majority of her body, saver her head, were slowly being crushed beneath Jack's dead weight.

"Ay?" Bunny lowered his arms, a startled look on his face.

"Bunny, quickly," Tooth moaned, struggling to push herself up.

The six-foot rabbit peered over so that he could see Jack's face and his eyes widened. The young Guardian's eyes were closed but his face was flushed red and there appeared to be beads of water flowing down his face. This wasn't right. Winter spirits don't sweat. "Strweth mate!" he gasped and quickly picked Jack up in his arms holding onto him carefully as if he were one of his precious eggs and dashed towards the door leaving Sandy to help Tooth up.

Tooth's entire body throbbed as she hastily dusted herself off, ruffling her feathers. Sandy shot her a concerned look and she quickly shook her head. "I'm alright," she told him, "but Jack's not." Without another word, she shot after Bunny like an arrow, Sandy following closely behind. Her heart was beating rapidly with nerves, worried that there may be something else desperately wrong with him.

#

Bunny shuddered violently as the briskly cold wind of the North Pole hit him, his grey fur standing on end. He had ignored the yells of the yetis as he bounded through the workshop as fast as he could. Tooth had been right; the young Guardian in his arms wasn't well. He could feel the warmth radiating off of him and instantly understood the importance of the situation: Jack was the spirit of winter. He wasn't supposed to be warm.

Moving quickly in an attempt to keep warm, Bunny hopped over to a mound of soft snow and unceremoniously dropped the young spirit onto it. He wanted to leave him there and head back inside, but he knew Tooth would deeply disapprove of that, plus some small part of him actually wanted to make sure Jack was alright. He shuddered at the thought. There was no way he cared about Jack Frost. No way. Not even the slightest. He nodded his head firmly. He was only staying outside for Tooth's sake.

He folded his arms across his chest, rubbing his paws up and down his arms in order to try and keep warm as he desperately attempted to stop his teeth from chattering. Why did it have to be so cold at the North Pole?

"Bunny?!" The voice of Tooth sounded distant as the cold wind scattered her voice. He turned to see the Tooth Fairy approaching as fast as her wings could take her, Sandy just behind her.

"You took your time gettin' here, Sheila," he said, hoping that now she was here he could go back into the warm.

Tooth looked at him, her eyes glittering with worry. "The yetis tried to stop us. Apparently they thought we were trying to escape and I had to explain what was going on. One of them went to get North." She peered around Bunny, looking for Jack. "Where is he?" She bit her lip nervously as her eyes rested back upon Bunny, waiting for his response.

"Over there." He waved his paw in the direction of the snowdrift he had tossed Jack into.

Tooth's amethyst eyes widened. "Oh, Bunny, you didn't?" She quickly flew over to where Jack was lying face down in the pile of snow.

"What?" He shrugged his shoulders. "You said he needed the cold, so I put him where it's cold."

Tooth shook her head, resisting the urge to groan at the Easter Bunny's antics. Jack was outside in the cold and that was the important thing. "Jack," she called, placing her hand on his shoulder, which, to her relief, was feeling relatively colder than before. "Jack."

There was no response from the unconscious spirit. Tooth bit her lip once more, her worry mounting. She looked across at Sandy and Bunny, but neither knew what to do. In all of their years as spirits, they had never encountered something like this before. Very rarely did spirits get sick, things like this usually only happened when children either began to stop believing or they themselves lost their belief and they all knew that neither of these was the case.

The fairy turned back to Jack and shook his shoulder gently. "Jack… Jack…"

There was another moment of silence before Jack let out a faint groan, his body shifting in the snow as he regained consciousness. He coughed before suddenly sitting up on his knees, causing Tooth to dart back away from him, her hand on her chest. "What the?" the young Guardian moaned, coughing out a mouthful of snow. His entire face was covered in the stuff and he looked like a Jack Frost-shaped snowman. Both Bunny and Sandy covered their faces so that Jack couldn't see them laughing at his appearance.

"Jack?" Tooth fluttered back to him almost cautiously. "Are you alright?"

With another groan, Jack placed his hand to his head, feeling the wet snow. "What the?" he murmured once more, wiping the white stuff off of his face, oblivious to Bunny and Sandy stifling their laughter and to Tooth behind him who was watching with nervous eyes.

"Jack?" she tried once more, flying closer to him.

The winter spirit turned, spraying the fairy with the snow that had been caught in his hair. She let out a squeal, covering her face with her hands as the cold substance hit her.

"Ah, Tooth, I'm sorry!" he cried, quickly getting to his feet.

"Oi, mate, watch what ya doin'." Bunny chastised though his tone conveyed his amusement at the scene in front of him.

Tooth shot him a dark look before turning back to Jack as she brushed the snow off of herself. "No, it's alright," she replied. "It was my fault. I was too close."

Jack shook his head – carefully this time. "No, it was my fault," he apologised. Stepping close to her, he reached up and brushed snow off of the top of her head, surprised at how soft and warm they felt considering the fact that they had just been coated in cold and wet snow.

Tooth tensed as she felt his fingers linger on her feathers, a soft blush crept across her cheeks.

"They're soft," he murmured to himself, letting his fingers trace the outline of one of them.

Tooth resisted the urge to shiver at his gentle touch; instead she focused on her reply, trying to distract herself from the fact that Jack was touching her feathers. "They're covered in a special wax which helps keep them dry and warm in the rain and cold," she told him. "Sort of like a duck." She inwardly grimaced and closed her eyes at her stupidity. She had just compared herself to a duck. A duck?! What had she been thinking? While she was accustomed to her feathers (after so many centuries how could she not?) and liked them, she had always found that she hated being compared to birds just because she had feathers – but she was a _fairy_, not a bird. If she was going to compare herself to a bird, then it should have been a swan. But a duck?

Jack let out a soft laugh. "I like ducks."

Her blush amplified at this and she lowered her head, flustered. Maybe comparing herself to a duck hadn't been stupid after all.

"You're shivering," he suddenly said, his hand still stroking her head feathers.

"Hmm?" She blinked and looked up at this, surprised. She hadn't realised she was cold, or was she shivering because Jack was touching her? She didn't know, but as soon as he made her aware of the cold, she couldn't stop her body from trembling.

Seeing her tremble, Jack quickly removed his hand. He knew he had let it linger on her feathers for too long, for far too long, but he hadn't been able to resist it, they had just been so soft. As soon as moved his hand, he immediately missed the soothing sensation and he found himself longing to touch her feathers (or even her skin) once more. A blush crept onto his cheeks and he shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking things like that.

"Are you alright?"

He looked up at Tooth and nodded. He was fine now but was confused as to what had happened and apparently he wasn't the only one.

"So, Frosty, what happened?" Bunny's loud voice cut across alerting Jack to the presence of both the Easter Bunny and the Sandman. He felt another wave of embarrassment wash over him. They had seen the interaction between himself and Tooth.

"Dunno," he replied. "I just got so hot in there and I needed to cold."

"You should have just said something. I'm sure North would have let you out if the heat was getting too much for you." Tooth folded her arms and shook her head. "He really should have known better. You're a winter spirit. You need to be cold."

"You're right, Sheila," Bunny added while Sandy nodded in agreement. "Take it that's why you kept trying to escape, ay." He directed this at Jack.

"I didn't think North would let me out. Every time I've seen him he looks deranged."

"That's 'cause it's nearly Christmas, mate," Bunny reminded him. "North gets like this 'round Christmas."

"Yeah, but he's kept us trapped in there for weeks."

At this, the elder Guardians all cast confused looks at each other. Weeks?

"Uh, Jack," Tooth began hesitantly, placing a delicate hand on his shoulder and he turned to look at her. "We haven't been here for weeks."

Jack's icy blue eyes widened. "Of course we have."

She shook her head slowly. How ill had he really been?

"No, mate, we haven't," Bunny said and Jack turned to look at him. "We've only been here a couple of days."

"What?"

"It's true," Tooth told him. She let out a sigh. "Why didn't you tell us you weren't feeling well?"

Jack was stunned. He had only been at the North Pole for a couple of days? He shook his head. The heat must have really gotten to him. "I, I don't know. I'm not used to asking others for help."

"Well you'd better get used to it, mate," Bunny said with a small smile.

At this, Jack gave a smile in return. Of course he wasn't alone any more, but it still took some time to get used to. "How'd I get out here anyway?"

Neither Tooth nor Bunny replied to this, instead Sandy conjured the image of the Easter Bunny carrying him. Jack laughed upon seeing the image while Bunny scowled.

"Aww, Kangaroo, you do care," Jack said, smirking as he walked over to Bunny who was now wearing a very dark look.

"I ain't no kangaroo," he all but spat in response, his paws twitching to get a hold of one of his boomerangs and fling them at the smirking spirit.

Tooth and Sandy looked at each other, unsure as to whether or not another argument was about to break out between the two. Their worries were put to rest as before either Jack or Bunny had a chance to retort, booming footsteps could be heard approaching, signalling the arrival of North.

"Ah Jack Frost," North called, stepping out into the cold, a yeti just behind him. "You are feeling better, no?"

The Guardian of Joy turned and his smirked faded, a light smile replacing it. "Yeah, thanks North."

The tall Russian nodded his head. "That is good."

"You know," Bunny began, folding his arms against his chest, "this wouldn't have happened if you'd listened to us in the first place and let us out every now and then. We have our own jobs that we need to check on, remember." Both Sandy and Tooth nodded in agreement at this. For the past couple of days Sandy had been unable to ensure that people slept peacefully while Tooth had resorted to having one of her fairies sneak in every couple of hours with an update.

North paused, taking in Bunny's words as well as what had happened to Jack. "Is nearly Christmas," he reminded them. "It is important these things are done. But," he paused once more before inwardly groaning, "I shall allow break time." It was the best he could offer. There was still a lot to do after all. He looked around at the four other spirits, all of the nodding in agreement, knowing it was the best they would get and he suddenly realised that all of them were still outside. "In, in!" he suddenly commanded with a loud clap of his hands, making the four Guardians jump. "Is still nearly Christmas. Lots to do. No time to waste. In, in!"

Sandy and Bunny followed North back into the building while Tooth turned back to Jack once more. She had seen the panic in his eyes, the clamminess of his skin. She had to make sure he was alright. "Jack, are you sure you're–"

"I'm fine, Tooth," he quickly interrupted her. He wanted to get back inside, not to work, but to get away from it all, away from his embarrassment. He couldn't believe how much being inside for a couple of days had affected him. He hadn't just overheated and fainted; he had had a breakdown and had acted crazy in front of Tooth. At that moment, he didn't want her to worry about him. He just wanted to move on. Making sure not to look at her, he headed back inside.

Tooth fluttered in the cold air for a moment. She still felt concern for the frost spirit despite his words, but with North now allowing them breaks, she hoped that he would be alright now. A growling sound alerted her to the presence of the yeti that had accompanied North, who was also thumping his foot against the ground in impatience, reminding her that he was waiting for her to join the others. With a hasty apology, she flew inside, the yeti following her and closing the large wooden door behind them.

#

North stayed true to his word and allowed the Guardians breaks, giving them time to focus of their own duties before returning to help him. Though the Guardian of Wonder still felt a lot of pressure that everything wasn't going to be ready in time, he understood that the others still needed to focus on their responsibilities, after all Sandy and Tooth had incredibly important jobs and Jack and Bunny also needed to undertake their own work. He had, though, been pleasantly surprised that the four of them had returned to the pole after their first break, he had thought they'd take the opportunity to not come back but they understood the importance of North's job even if he didn't always understand the importance of their own.

Jack was revelling in feeling the cold wind on his skin once more as he soared across the skies bringing snow and ice back to the Northern hemisphere once more. He had been incredibly disheartened to see that a vast majority of the snow he had created a few days prior had all but melted but the fact that he was now able to rectify this pleased him greatly. He had been deeply tempted, as he flew across Burgess, to visit Jamie, but resisted the urge because he knew that as soon as he was with the young boy, he would want to engage in a snowball fight or create crazy ice paths for him and his friends to sledge along. It was a feeling that swallowed him greatly, he was the Guardian of Joy yet he was unable to join in with the joy and fun he created, instead he felt as if he was becoming more like the others, focused on their work rather than enjoying it.

With a heavy heart, he allowed the icy air to carry him back to the North Pole. Landing in the Globe Room, he noticed that, as usual, he was the last one back. He let out a sigh. He wanted to be back out in the cold. He looked around at the other three Guardians, who, like himself, appeared to have more life in them now that they were allowed time to concentrate on their own jobs. Tooth was talking animatedly to two of her fairies, fluttering near the top of the massive golden globe, while Bunny was hunched in a corner, painting an egg, his eyes and ears alert for North's arrival. Sandy, meanwhile, was hovering near the giant rabbit, his eyes closed in sleep. Jack let out another sigh and gave his head a gentle shake. He looked up at the globe, at the millions of glowing lights.

Watching the globe, he found his line of sight drifting higher, resting on the Tooth Fairy who was still talking with her fairies. The two had barely spoken since the day he had collapsed and he hoped that he hadn't hurt her feelings with his brash attitude towards her, but he still wasn't used to others being concerned about him and caring and he knew that she cared about him the most. It was pretty obvious seeing as a few times since he had caught her glancing at him, but as soon as she realised he was looking at her, she would blush and quickly look away. It was this, along the two of them barely speaking that resulted in him wondering if he had hurt her feelings. He hadn't meant to, but he couldn't help it.

He studied her, noting her smile as she spoke, the rapid movement of her wings so that they were literally a blur and how the light reflected off her multi-tonal feathers, making them (and her) shine brightly. Looking at her, he realised that he still hadn't apologised for falling on her and worrying her. He hated not really talking to her but he didn't know how to approach her. He swallowed. He still had to apologise, so maybe that was a good place to start.

With a breath and quickly running his fingers through his white hair, he propelled himself into the air, stopping once he was next to Tooth. "Uh, Tooth," he began, surprised at his own hesitance. He was Jack Frost, bold and confident; he wasn't supposed to stuttering and unsure.

Hearing his voice and noting his presence next to her, Tooth quickly sent the two fairies away before turning to the winter spirit. "Jack." She turned to look at him, her head tilted slightly to one side, curiosity gleaming in her purple-pink eyes.

"I, uh, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry." Seriously, what was the matter with him? It was just Tooth he was talking to. Why was he feeling like an embarrassed fool?

Her eyes narrowed as her confusion increased. "About what?"

He cleared his throat. "For the other day. Worrying you and then falling on you. I hope I didn't hurt you."

A look of realisation hit her and she slowly shook her head, a light smile on her face. "No," she said softly, "you didn't."

The young spirit let out a sigh of relief. That hadn't been too hard and the fact that she was smiling at him proved that she wasn't angry with him. "Good. I was worried," he admitted, turning his head away. And now he was back as a blubbering idiot. What was the matter with him?

Her smile increased. "I've had worse," she told him. She reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder, a light, pleasant shiver ruffling through her feathers from the touch. "But thanks for worrying," she said sincerely.

Jack nodded and looked back up at her, matching her smile with his own. Her warm hand was still on his shoulder, but he didn't mind. Her touch always had a calming effect on him and he always found it oddly soothing. He smiled more widely at her, the white of his teeth showing and he grinned even more as he felt her twitch and saw her eyes gleam, knowing how desperate she was to get another glimpse at his pearly white teeth. He quickly covered his teeth, amused when her smile faltered slightly.

"Jack, don't tease," she lightly scolded him; through she continued to smile at him.

A mischievous gleam shone in his eyes. "I can't help it," he told her. "I am the Guardian of Fun after all."

A light musical laugh escaped from her. "That you are."

"Aw, isn't this quaint," a sneering voice suddenly echoed through the room.

Jack and Tooth jumped and looked around for the source of the voice while Sandy woke up and Bunny leapt to his feet, a boomerang ready in his paw. The sky outside began to darken quickly.

"Show yerself!" Bunny bellowed, as he and Sandy approached the centre of the room, mimicking Jack and Tooth's movements by looking around the see whom the speaker was.

Jack's grip on his staff tightened, holding it defensively in front of himself. He recognised that voice.

Tooth had removed her hand from his shoulder but remained close to her fellow Guardian. She too recognised the voice and it made her heart quiver. It couldn't be possible.

The voice tutted. "Four of the big Five. I'm a little disappointed that you don't recognise me. You really should."

The darken sky outside appeared to creep into the Globe Room as the fires flickered and the blackness began to seep down the walls like ooze. Tooth gasped and fluttered closer to Jack. She wasn't scared but she had never seen anything like this happen before and it unnerved her.

The doors into the room suddenly burst open, making the four Guardians jump despite themselves and North appeared, a look of shock upon his face as he gazed upon the increasingly darken walls as the fires were extinguished. "What?"

"Ah, at last the bungling, incompetent fool arrives," the voice sneered. "Now the fun can begin."

North stood next to Bunny and Sandy, looking up at the Globe. "What is going on?" He flexed his arms. "Show yourself, you coward!"

Laughter echoed through the room, making the hairs on the back of Jack's neck stand up. "Fine," the voice said.

By now, the only light in the room came from the silver moon, which illuminated the Guardian design on the floor, and the lights of the believers. The five Guardians turned their eyes to the sliver of light as a swirling black smoky mass began to form above the centre of the motif. It increased in height, forming a body, the body of a figure they all recognised. The laughter increased as the black smoke fell from the figure like sand revealing the owner of the voice.

Pitch Black look down at the insignia beneath his feet, a malicious smile stretching across his pointed face. "Oh look, I'm a Guardian."


	5. Spider Pretending to be a Butterfly

**I seem to be slipping back into my usual two weeks plus for updating. I'm blaming the weather - we're in the middle of a heatwave and it is ridiculously hot, so I don't really feel like doing a lot. **

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter and remember reviews are much appreciated ^_^**

* * *

Silence.

Nothing could be heard over than the dull thumping of beating hearts and fluttering wings.

The majority of the inhabitants of the Globe Room were silenced with disbelief. The room was eerily cold and was still enveloped in darkness apart from the streak of silver light that illuminated the figure that had caused the silence. It couldn't be possible. It couldn't. Pitch Black couldn't possibly be standing there. He couldn't. He –

"You really do seem overly surprised by my sudden appearance," Pitch spoke, his voice condescending, a slight pout of disappointment on his lips. "I would have thought that the Man in the Moon would have informed you of my impending arrival."

"Pitch!" Bunnymund's roar of anger shattered the silence as he removed both of his boomerangs from their holsters, flinging one of them at the Bogeyman.

Pitch's yellow eyes lazily watched the approaching weapon and mere seconds before would hit him, he vanished in a cloud of black smoke, his laughter echoing throughout the room.

The five Guardians looked around for any sign of him, guarded, ready for when he made his presence known, though they were still in a state of disbelief. Pitch was no longer believed in or feared. He had been dragged into the abyss by the Nightmares, by his own fears. He couldn't be back. He couldn't. But he was. They didn't understand how it could be possible. His sudden appearance had taken them all by surprise. How could they have not been warned?

Pitch's voice tutted sadly, echoing all around the room, reverberating off of the walls. "Is that any way to treat a fellow Guardian?"

"You're no Guardian, mate," Bunny spat, catching the returning Boomerang. He looked around for any sign Pitch, but he had completely disappeared. The other four Guardians mimicked his movements.

"Alas, no. The mighty Man in the Moon has yet to bestow that honour upon me." Pitch sighed sadly.

"It is not possible," North spoke, "Man in Moon would have told us. You cannot be here, Pitch Black."

"It seems the ever illusive Man in the Moon has failed you for I am indeed back." The Bogeyman sighed once more. "I guess he wanted it to be a surprise. So, surprise."

"There is no way the Man in the Moon would make you a Guardian," Bunny sneered. The thought of the Nightmare King joining their ranks sickened him to his stomach. He would prefer the Groundhog any old day as long as Pitch never joined them.

"What are you doing here?" Jack asked, a current of wind keeping him aloft as he hovered next to Tooth. His grip on his staff was tight as he held it across his chest.

"What makes you think I want something?"

"We – I won't let you take those memories, not again, Pitch," Tooth determinedly called out, her body darting around in a quick, tight circle, trying to find where he was hiding. The memory of what happened last time was still fresh in the Tooth Fairy's mind. She could still remember and feel the disappointment and loneliness of the millions of children who had awoken to find that neither she nor her mini fairies had visited which had resulted in them no longer believing in her. A chill fluttered down her spine, rippling through her feathers, at the recollection, of how her palace became lifeless, how she began to fall apart. She couldn't let that happen again. Not ever.

"Oh, Toothiana, I am ever so sorry for that," Pitch apologised, though none of the Guardians felt any sincerity in his voice. He sighed. "While I was trapped, I was able to do some thinking and realised that it hadn't been the best course of action, but I was angry." He let out a hollow laugh. "You know how we do crazy things when we're angry."

Bunny snorted. "Yeah right, mate."

Pitch appeared to ignore him as his voice continued to echo around the room. "And, Sandy – I do hope you don't mind me calling you that – of course I am terribly sorry for momentarily killing you. It is lucky indeed that those children were able to revive you with their beliefs."

Sandy narrowed his eyes in anger, streams of golden sand erupting from his ears, though since he was hidden in the darkness, his fury was not noticed by anyone.

"Your words do not fool us, Pitch Black," North said, his voice raised, uttering his first words since Pitch's sudden appearance.

"Fool you?! I'm not trying to fool you, only offer my deepest, sincere apologises for my previous misdemeanours."

Bunny snorted once more, still not convinced by the Nightmare King's response. "Try pullin' the other one, mate."

With the Easter Bunny and North engaging Pitch in conversation, Jack edged closer to Tooth, feeling the small gusts of wind that her wings emitted against his back. "I don't buy it," he muttered to her, turning around and feeling the small gusts hit his chest. "Something's not right."

Tooth nodded. "I agree." She turned and looked at him, barely able to make him out in the darkness despite their close proximity. "Maybe North or Sandy have figured something out. You should go and check."

Jack's eyes narrowed with confusion. "What about you?"

Tooth was somewhat taken aback by this, though she didn't know why. The tone of his voice, it was a mixture of concern and questioning. "I'll be fine," she told him, her voice low. "But you're using up your energy by staying up like this."

This time it was Jack's turn to be taken aback. He hadn't expected that to be her response. But, she was right; he was using up his energy by forcing the artificial wind to keep him up. How had she noticed? He shook that from his mind; that was for another time. For now, he had to focus on Pitch and what he was up to. With one last glance at Tooth, though he couldn't clearly see her features, he allowed to wind to carry him to the ground, close to North, ice spreading out across the floor as his feet touched the wooden surface. "North?" he whispered, taking careful steps towards the sound of the Russian's voice. "North?"

"Ah, Jack." The winter spirit was surprised at hearing North whisper. He had half expected to hear him bellow his name. "What is wrong?"

Jack raised his eyebrows at that. What was wrong? Seriously? "Pitch," he replied. "What's he doing here?"

North paused momentarily. "I do not know." It was one of the many things troubling him. Why was Pitch here? How did he escape? What was he planning? Why hadn't the Man in the Moon told them he had escaped?

Jack let out a sigh, trying to hide his disappointment. North always seemed to have the answers and this was the first time that he didn't. He knew it wasn't the Russian's fault, but he had just expected a more knowing response. "He must be planning something," he mumbled in response. "Why else would he be here?"

"I agree, but is Pitch. He will not give us correct answers."

The young Guardian nodded in response. "He's playing with us."

North nodded. "But why?"

Jack remained silent. Why was Pitch messing about with them like this? It wasn't his style from what he could tell. He was more of a man of action, getting on with what he had to do, but now he was engaging them in idle conversation. If he were Pitch, the only reason he would do something like this was if he was aiming to divert their attention away from something. His blue eyes rounded. "He's distracting us!"

North inhaled sharply. Of course. It made sense now. "But from what?"

The Guardian of Joy shook his head. "I don't know, but we have to stop him." He paused. "But how can we alert the others without Pitch realising that we know?"

"We cannot."

"What do we do then?"

"We must find where Pitch is lurking. Once we know, we can handle situation."

Jack nodded in agreement. But how were they supposed to accomplish that? The entire room was engulfed in darkness. Pitch could be hiding anywhere. None of them had the ability to make the room light again or to locate his position. He sighed as his hand gripped his staff more tightly. Wait… "North," he whispered, "I've got an idea."

"What is it?"

"If I can cover the room with ice, I might be able to sense him though it," Jack explained. "If I make it cold enough in here as well, then he might give away his position because he wouldn't be expecting it."

North thought it over. While he didn't completely understand the extent of Jack's abilities, it was the only plan they had and he had faith in Jack.

"The only problem is," Jack added hesitantly, "it's going to get cold in here. Very cold. And we can't warn the others." His thoughts drifted to Tooth who was still hovering above them. He just hoped that the cold wouldn't affect her too much.

"Do not worry," North told him and Jack jumped as he felt the Russian's large hand clasp his shoulder. He hadn't realised the two had been standing so close. "We Guardians are stronger then you think. Will not let simple thing like cold affect us."

Jack nodded. "But what about Tooth?" He hadn't meant to voice his concern for her, but the fact that she was in the air troubled him. What if the cold came into contact with her wings and froze them? The image of her tumbling in the air sent a tremor through his body. He resisted the sudden urge to shake his head. Why was he thinking about her again? Why was he more concerned about her wellbeing then the others?

"Do not worry about Tooth." North had felt Jack's body shake and understood his concern for the Tooth Fairy. "She will be fine."

Jack nodded, though not overly convinced by North's words. Nonetheless, he had to believe that Tooth wouldn't allow something like that to happen to her. _She must have been in places of extreme cold before,_ he told himself. _She'll know what to do_. He swallowed and gripped his staff with both hands, holding it vertically in front of him, the base touching the floor. He closed his eyes, blocking out the voices of Bunnymund, Tooth and Pitch as he focused. Focused on lower the temperature of the room even more while sending out a light coating of ice across the ground, he took himself deep into his soul, stretching out the ice as far as he could. The deeper he delved, the further he was able to send the ice and he soon sensing North a foot in front of him.

He tilted his head to one side slightly, feeling the ice stretch across the floor, soon coming across Sandy who was standing close the Globe while Bunny was on the opposite side of the room, lightly hopping from foot to foot, trying to stay off of the ice for as long as possible. A small smile crossed Jack's lips. Had this been any other situation, he would have turned the Easter Rabbit into an icicle, but not wasn't the time for that and he deeply resisted the urge. There were more pressing matters at hand. He had to find Pitch.

He soon came to the conclusion that Pitch wasn't on the ground with them. The ice had reached the furthest corners of the room and he couldn't sense the Bogeyman. That only meant he was further up, in one of the galleries overlooking the room.

The ice cast a glistening sheen across the walls as it seeped upwards, covering every available surface, though he kept the ice away from the Globe. For some reason, it didn't seem right to cover it.

"Jack, have you found Pitch yet?" North's voice cut through his concentration.

A frown began to cross the winter spirit's face as the ice met in the centre of the ceiling. He hadn't been able to sense Pitch. It didn't make sense. He could still hear his slimy voice in the back of his mind which meant that he was still in the room, conversing with the others, but he had searched every inch of it. His eyes snapped open. "I know where Pitch is."

North's eyes widened with surprise. Of course he hadn't expected Jack to fail, but he was still surprised that he had actually been able to succeed. Jack really must be in tune with his abilities. "Where?"

"The Globe." Even though Jack hadn't covered the golden sphere with ice, since he hadn't detected the Bogeyman anywhere else in the room, the only logical, and last, place for him the hide was within the Globe.

"The Globe?" North turned his focus towards the centre of the room, but with all of the darkness, he couldn't tell whether or not Jack was right. But he had faith in Jack. "Do you have a plan?"

Jack nodded, even though the other Guardian couldn't see it. He had a plan.

#

Bunnymund ground his teeth, his boomerangs tight in his grasp. For the past who-knows-how-long he had been listening to Pitch prattle on about how he had turned over a new leaf, that being stuck with his nightmares had caused him to see the error of his ways, that he had done a lot of thinking and realised that he didn't want to be feared anymore, after all, he didn't want to be the bad guy anymore, he wanted to be liked. Whilst he had been consumed by his nightmares, he had realised how much he actually wanted to be liked rather than feared and that the best – no, the only way – to be believed in. And, in order for him to be believed in, he had to be good. This epiphany had resulted in him being able to escape his prison and seek them out – he admitted that he had lied about becoming a Guardian but hadn't been able to resist the temptation; he was, after all, just a spirit. Bunny had rolled his eyes more times than he could count during his presumptuous speech. Seriously, who did Pitch think he was fooling. None of them were buying his story. None of them.

He didn't get why they were still listening to him. But they were all separated by the darkness, unable to communicate with each other. Plus Pitch had disappeared, hidden himself within the confines of the blackness that covered them and they had no idea where he was.

He gritted his teeth once more. Oh Tooth would be on the brink of pulling out her feathers if she caught him grinding his teeth as much as he was and a smile crossed his face, despite himself. This smile, however, soon evaporated like a drop of rain on a hot day as the room became increasingly cold. _What the hell,_ he thought. It was cold enough already. What was going on?

It was then that he felt it. Ice. He didn't know whether to laugh or frown. _Bloody_ _show pony._ It appeared that Frosty had come up with a plan. But what? Plunging the room into perpetual winter? He shivered. He _hated_ the cold. He was grateful that it appeared that the newest Guardian wasn't going to prank him, since none of the ice actually touched him. _Makes a change,_ he thought with another shiver. He hoped that Sandy and Tooth were going to be alright with the sudden dip in temperature – he wasn't too worried about North since he knew the other Guardian could withstand the cold.

He turned his attention away from whatever Jack was, focusing, somewhat regretfully, on Pitch's slimy voice. He gritted his teeth together once more. He was still prattling on about his change of heart, repeating what he had already said countless times in an endless flow as neither Sandy nor Tooth had interrupted him. Sandy he understood for obvious reasons, but Tooth, why hadn't she put a stop to his madness? Surely she wasn't buying his idiotic words? How could she, any of them, believe the words coming out of his mouth? No, he told himself firmly, the reason she was talking was because she was listening. That's what she did. She would listen to what others had to say and then voice her opinion.

He shivered, the cold making his fur stand on end. _Why does Frosty have to make it so cold?_ He let the shudder run through his body in an attempt to shake off the cold. What was Jack doing?

His ears twitched as he tuned them back towards the sound of Pitch's voice. _Where is the bugger hiding?_

"… I can't believe I never realised how enlightening helping children could be," Pitch was saying. "To be believed in instead of feared is fills me with so much pleasure and satisfaction. I can see now why you do these good deeds."

"You've said that already," Tooth pointed out. She had been listening to him repeat the same sentiments over and over and she was bored of it. She knew he was lying through his yellow, rotting teeth but she let him blather on just in case he let something slip, though she knew the chances of that were minuscule. This was Pitch and he _always_ knew exactly what he was doing.

"Ah, of course I have," Pitch quickly replied, not to be thrown off by the sudden interruption. "But this new lease of life bestowed upon me, I can't help but feel excited."

Tooth frowned. He was stalling them, that much was obvious but she didn't know why and due to the darkness she was unable to communicate with any of the others or make out where Pitch was. She didn't know how long it had been since Jack had left her to find North and she had no idea whether or not he had found them, but she knew that regardless, the cold that had engulfed the room was down to him which meant that he had a plan. She had fluttered towards the centre of the room, feeling that it was warmer there, but all she could do was wait.

A bright blazing light of icy blue suddenly illuminated the room. Tooth gasped and turned her head away from the ferocity of the light, darting back. Black spots scattered across her vision and she quickly blinked them away. She looked around and let out another gasp, softer than the one before. The light had dispersed, taking the darkness along with it; the room had returned to its normal temperature. Below she could see her fellow Guardians and the way Jack was holding his staff out in front of him, told her that he was the one responsible for the light. Looking down at them, she realised that they were all looking in the direction of the Globe, following their gaze, she felt her breath catch in her throat at the sight of Pitch Black standing on the top of the golden sphere, his yellow eyes gleaming and a frown on his face.

"Oh, it looks like you were finally able to find me," he sneered, the banter gone. "It took you long enough."

"We know you are up to something, Pitch," North said, his loud voice carrying across the room.

A look of mock horror crossed the Bogeyman's face. "Me?" he cried, aghast. "Whatever could you mean?"

"We know you're not here 'cos you've had a change of 'eart," Bunny replied, his eyes fixed on Pitch, his paws flexing in anticipation, ready to throw his boomerangs at a moment's notice.

Pitch looked flabbergasted. "Have you not been listening? I've turned over a new leaf. I'm a changed man."

Bunny snorted loudly while Sandy shook his head.

"How did you escape though?" Tooth asked, still hovering in the air in line with Pitch. "I've been listening and that's the one thing you haven't told us."

"Oh, that. I just realised that I had nothing to be afraid of anymore. I didn't want to bad anymore, since I knew that that was the reason no one believed in me and was what terrified me most, but as soon as I knew how to overcome that fear, by becoming good, I suddenly found that I was free."

Tooth looked down at the others. Pitch's explanation was plausible and made sense, but still, she felt like there was something wrong.

Pitch noticed her look. "What, still don't believe me?"

"No, we don't," Jack spoke up. "You need to prove that what you've said is true."

Pitch let out a scoff. "Haven't I already proven myself? I've apologised to Toothiana and Sandy. Do you think I would have been able to do that if I were still evil?"

"If you were lying, yes," Jack replied.

"Jack is right," North added. "Saying sorry is an easy thing to say, to mean though, that is different."

"You have a lot of sins to repent for, Pitch," Tooth told him. "It's not just me and Sandy that you've hurt."

Pitch folded his arms. "I know that." He sighed. "What do you want me to do?"

There was a silence amongst the Guardians. What was the best way for Pitch to prove himself, or, as they all believed, give himself away?

Sandy suddenly brightened up and pointed his finger upwards as a stream of images quickly materialised and flashed above his golden head. The Guardians exchanged confused looks, unable to understand what Sandy was trying to say. They could make out the image of Pitch, but the rest of it, the clouds, the lightning and a weird looking contraption that was attached to Pitch at one point, made no sense to them. It was times like this that they all wished Sandy could talk, or, at least, make what he was trying to say easier to decipher.

Bunnymund shook his head. "It's no good, mate," he said to the little Sandman. "We don't know what you're tryin' a say."

Sandy huffed, sand steaming out of his ears for a moment as the images disappeared. A frown settled on the Guardian of Dreams' face.

North beckoned the three Guardians to join him and Jack and once they were all together, in a hushed voice, he said, "We need a way to trick Pitch."

"But how? How are supposed to know whether or not he's lying?" Tooth asked, fluttering in-between Sandy and Jack.

"C'mon Tooth," Bunny moaned crossly, "we know he's lying. This is Pitch Black we're talking about. You know, the Bogeyman, the Nightmare King. Of course he's lying. Have you already forgotten what he did to you, to Sandy, to all of us a few months ago?"

The other male Guardians looked at Bunny in surprise. They had never heard him to talk to anyone other than Jack like that.

Tooth looked at him, aghast, her amethyst eyes sparkling with sadness. "Of course I haven't. I just meant how are we supposed to work out what he's planning? Pitch is clever. He'll probably see any plan or trick a mile off," she mumbled, casting her eyes to the ground.

"If Pitch really has turned over a new leaf, which I highly doubt," Jack began, "then maybe we should find out what he wants to be the spirit of, since it can't really be fear anymore."

"And how is that supposed to help us?" Bunny wondered, his arms folded against his chest, clearly not impressed by the proceedings.

From across the room, Pitch watched the five and rolled his eyes. He was ready for whatever it was they were planning.

Listening to the Guardians discuss what Pitch could want to be the spirit of, as well as how to ask him, an excited look crossed Sandy's face and the image of a light bulb appeared over his head. The other Guardians, however, were too engrossed in their conversation that they failed to notice Sandy's excitement over his idea, and, once again, there was no elf in the room for him to make use of. He frowned. Grabbing the Easter Bunny's leather belt, Sandy tugged on it harshly, making Bunnymund bend over.

"Oi, Sandy, what's the big idea?" Bunny cried, spluttering slightly from the sudden jolt while Jack sniggered into the back of his hand, clearly amused by the little Sandman's tactic.

Still frowning, though not as much as before, Sandy let go of Bunny and pointed at the light bulb above his head.

"Sandy, you have an idea!" North cheerfully said. "Why you not say so before?"

The Guardian of Dreams rolled his eyes in exasperation before showing them images of his new plan.

Once Sandy had finished showing them, North nodded, his hand stroking his thick beard. "Yes, I do believe it could work. Good thinking Sandy."

Sandy nodded, beaming happily.

"Right, so we'll distract Pitch while Sandy puts his plan into motion," Jack said, looking around at them.

They all nodded in agreement and turned back to the towering figure still standing on the top of the Globe. The skin of Pitch's face stretched as his thin lips broke into a smile, his crooked teeth visible, along with the gap where the tooth Tooth had punched out of him at Easter should have been.

"You have my attention," he said, looking down at them, as if they were prey. "What is it you want me to do?"

Jack took a step forward. "If you want to give up being the spirit of fear, then you need something to replace it. Tell us what that is."

If possible, the smile stretched even further. "I still want to be the spirit of fear, it's why I was created, it's who I am and you should know all too well that you can't change who you are." He paused, taking in the Guardians' appearances. "Well, not mentally anyway."

This struck something within all of the Guardians. Jack remembered what Tooth had said to him shortly after they had met: _'We were all somebody, Jack'_. Of course their physical appearances must have changed when they became spirits, his had, but it had never occurred to him to ask. It was something private after all. But still… what had they looked like before they became spirits?

"I do not understand. If you want to stay as fear, then what is it you want?" North's voice boomed, breaking Jack out of his thoughts. The young Guardian's eyes rested on the elder. Had he always looked like that?

Pitch let out a hollow laugh. "You Guardians…" He shook his head. "I want the fear I cast to be more fun. Rather than use it to scare people by being the Bogeyman who hides in dark corners ready to jump out and scare, I want to be more like… more like… the Pump–"

A stream of golden sand shot from the middle of the group, striking Pitch in the centre of his forehead. The Nightmare King's eyes fluttered, the yellow irises turning to white as his eyes rolled, sleep claiming him. His body fell limp and toppled off of the Globe, landing in a heap on the floor with a dull thud.

Tooth winced as his body impacted against the wood. "Maybe we should have softened the blow," she stated half-heartedly, though she couldn't deny the satisfaction that flooded her body upon seeing the sight of the unconscious spirit.

Bunny shrugged his shoulders, through a delighted smile was on his face. He had been looking forward to a moment like this in so long. "He's a spirit. He'll be fine."

No one disagreed with him. Instead, they stood to one side, allowing Sandy through so he could continue with his plan. The small Guardian walked over to the sleeping spirit and placed a hand on Pitch's head, closing his eyes as he set to work.

"Interesting what he said," Bunny said, breaking the silence that had briefly formed, "about wanting to continue to spread fear despite 'turning over a new leaf'."

North shook his head. "Does not make sense. You cannot be the spirit of fear and be good. It does not work. The two do not go together."

"He's obviously lying then," Jack said, remembering how convincing and manipulative he could be.

"We'll have to wait and see," Tooth replied in a small voice, her eyes watching Sandy as he examined Pitch's dreams. Her eyes narrowed as she watched and a moment later, she flew over to him. "What is it Sandy?"

The Sandman raised his head and looked at her for a moment before slowly shaking his head. He looked back at Pitch and slowly raised his hand away from his forehead, summoning the Bogeyman's dreams as he did so.

By now, the others had joined them and all watched with curiosity as the golden grains of sand formed into the image of Pitch crouching over the bed of a sleeping child. The silhouette placed his hand of the child's head either putting something into the child or draining them of something, they couldn't tell, as the child began to squirm violently. Tooth let out a gasp while the others wore sickening expressions. The dream transformed as the outline of Pitch stood up, a scythe appearing in his hands. The forms of the five Guardians then appeared and Pitch slashed the air with his weapon, grains of sand cascading from it and hitting the sandy forms of his rivals who withered in pain before he swiped his scythe at them once more, their bodies collapsing like broken puppets. The sickening looks on the Guardians' faces increased. They knew Pitch had been lying, but they hadn't expected him to dream about their deaths, something, they realised, was naïve of them.

The image shook, the golden sand being replaced by black. Pitch's eyes shot open and the dream disappeared into thousands of gold and black grains of sand. The now conscious spirit's hand shot out, grabbing Sandy by his throat, his lips curled up in a snarl.

"Do you really think meagre little parlour tricks like that will work on me?"

"Sandy!"

"Let him go Pitch!"

Pitch smiled, allowing his grip to tighten around the small Guardian's throat, watching with pleasure as the Sandman's eyes widened with fear as he suddenly felt an overwhelming dark shadow cross through his body, wincing from the added pressure of Pitch's fingers, before the Nightmare King pushed him away and stood up in once fluid motion. "See, fear is fun." Before any of them had a chance to attack, he disappeared in a puff of black smoke, his laughter filling the air.

Bunny took out one of his boomerangs, holding onto it with a tight grip, his teeth bared, while North rushed over to Sandy, checking that he was alright. "You smarmy piece of –" he snarled. "Get back 'ere and face us!"

"Ooh," Pitch laughed. "Looks like you've got a rabid rabbit on your hands, so eager for a fight. But what about the rest of you? I can see you all cowering with fear at my unexpected awakening." His derisive tone echoed throughout the room.

The five Guardians looked around them once more, trying to find where he was hiding. He was playing a game of cat and mouse with them.

With another puff, he appeared directly in front of Tooth, startling her and she darted backwards away from him. Pitch grabbed her wrist, pulling her back towards him, grabbing her throat while using the hand that had grabbed hold of her wrist to caress her cheek. He could feel her tremble beneath his touch.

Jack felt his blood boil. He was seething. "Let her go Pitch," he snarled, pointing his staff at him.

Pitch ignored him as he stared into the Tooth Fairy's wide, fear-filled eyes. "Interesting," he murmured before pushing her away from him in the same manner as Sandy before disappearing once more.

Jack ran forward, catching her in his cold arms, ignoring the momentary pleasure that shot through his body – now wasn't the time for feelings like that. "Are you alright?" He couldn't see her face but he could feel her shaking in his grasp and knew that it wasn't from the cold.

She shook her head. She had no idea what Pitch had done, or was doing, but she felt somewhat strange, as if a dark presence had delved into her body, into her mind, searching for something.

"To be believed in and feared once more really is a wondrous feeling. I can see why you Guardians crave it so much. The power you have." Pitch appeared behind Bunnymund, grabbing hold of his ears, forcing him to bend back painfully. He let out a cry of pain and twisted awkwardly.

"So obvious…" Pitch's voice scoffed as he disappeared once more. Bunny collapsed to the ground, his boomerang falling from his grasp, groaning.

With another laugh, the Bogeyman appeared next to North who had still been checking on Sandy. With another Guardian so close, Pitch just touched North's shoulder for the briefest of moments, his yellow eyes gleaming with delight, before disappearing once more. North stood up abruptly, a coldness enveloping his body from the Bogeyman's touch. What was Pitch doing?

Jack gripped his staff tightly in his hand. He didn't like this, not one bit. He had no idea what he done to the other Guardians, but he knew from Tooth's shaking and the perplexed, empty expressions of the others, that it wasn't good. He needed to find out where Pitch was, but he couldn't leave Tooth, whom he was still holding on to, though her trembling had abated. "What do you want?"

"Ah, Jack Frost, I'd almost _forgotten_ you were here. Still hanging out with these losers?"

Jack inwardly winced at the emphasis placed on the word 'forgotten'. _I'm not alone anymore,_ he reminded himself. _I'm not forgotten. People believe in me._ His ears sharpened, continuing to search for when Pitch had hidden himself. "They're my friends."

Pitch scoffed. "Friends? Still living in a childish fantasy, it seems. But they'll hold you back, you know they will. You're more powerful then you know. I told you that last time we met, Jack. Join me and I'll allow you to unleash your true potential."

"Jack, don't listen to him," Tooth's voice whispered from in front him.

A small smile crossed the young Guardian's face. "Don't worry, Tooth. There's no way I'd ever join him," he told her, all of them, reassuringly. There was no shadow of a doubt about it. He would _never_ join Pitch. Never.

Rather than point out how pathetic and tedious the Guardians were, Pitch let out a short, mocking laugh. "I have no use for you anyway, Jack. I already know what it is you fear and I now have more power than any of you. I have no need for children like you."

"What do you mean?" North asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

Pitch let out a snort. "And give away all of my secrets?" He made a tutting sound as he appeared a couple of feet in front of Tooth and Jack, startling the Guardians once more. A smile still stretched across his pointed face. His yellow eyes flickered around the room, resting on each of the Guardians in turn, though they rested on the two before him for a fraction longer, as he tossed a ball of black sand in his pale hand. "This is going to be fun." He threw the ball into the air where it exploded into millions of grains, disappearing into the air, taking Pitch with them.

Another silence filled the room. North helped Sandy and the Bunny to their feet before the trio walked over to Jack and Tooth. The winter spirit had relaxed his grip on her, though she still kept close to him, her heart beating furiously. The five of them stared at the spot in which Pitch had disappeared.

"What," Bunny breathed, "the hell was that?"


	6. Let the Nightmares Commence

**A/N: Wow, I really am getting pretty bad with my updates already. I have no excuse this time other then procrastination - once it takes hold there is no letting go.**

**Anyway, thank you to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited so far. I hope you continue to enjoy this story as things are going to be taking quite a turn now.**

* * *

Darkness covered the town of Burgess, signalling the end of another day. The moon glimmered silently in the sky, casting its eerie, silvery light across the sleeping town. The stars above barely twinkling in the cold December night.

Deep below the surface of the earth, the towering figure of Pitch Black sat in a high-back black throne, staring at the dark, dull, lifeless Globe in front of him. A smug smile adorned his face as he strummed his long, bony fingers against the mane of one of his Nightmares, its head lowered as it neighed. The Bogeyman was clearly satisfied. More than satisfied in fact. His appearance at the North Pole had been more than a success. Not only had he succeeded in shocking those idiotic Guardians with his sudden appearance, the looks on their faces as he revealed that he had escaped the prison they forced him into had been priceless, but he had also been able to put the second part of his plan into motion. The fact that the next stage of his plan was underway caused a wave of glee to wash through him. Oh, he couldn't wait until everything was in full swing.

His smile widened as he continued to absentmindedly pat the sandy mane of the Nightmare. He had definitely accomplished more than what he had set out to do. He had also managed to throw them into a wave of doubt about the all-powerful Man in the Moon, due to the fact that that high and mighty being hadn't informed them of his return. It was something he had actually been surprised about considering that the Man in the Moon was usually quick on the uptake, but not this time and it deeply amused him that rather than deter his plan, it fuelled it. He let out a snort. The Man in the Moon was nothing but a silent watcher, doing nothing as the world crumbles around him. Those Guardians were pure idiots to still follow the orders of someone who did nothing to help them.

A hollow laugh escaped his lips, the sound echoing around the deserted, cavernous room, as it had done back at the North Pole. The Man in the Moon really was such a complete and utter idiot. Because of him, the Guardians had been unprepared, allowing to him to do what he had done and put in plans into motion a lot quicker than he had originally intended. Not that it mattered. It just meant that those five blundering fools had no idea what was awaiting them. He raised his hand, studying it as he remembered what he had felt when he had touched each of them. His yellow eyes gleamed. Oh, he really couldn't wait. The Guardians really had no idea what he was about to put them through.

He lowered his hand and ceased his administrations on the Nightmare's mane as he stood up. The Nightmare whinnied and shook its head from side to side.

Pitch's footsteps echoed as he slowly walked closer to the Globe, his eyes fixed on it. Yes, the Guardians really had no idea what he was about to do to them, but first he needed a guinea pig with which to test his plan and, his eyes narrowed slightly as they continued to gleam and a thin smile crossed his face. He had the perfect candidate in mind.

#

The North Pole was a bustle of activity. The yetis continued to work tirelessly on the toys while the elves ran in between their legs, creating mischief as they went, distracting the yetis. Everywhere was busy except in the Globe room, where everything had come to a standstill.

It had been several hours since Pitch's disappearance and North had sunk into an oversized armchair near one of the fires, his head in his hands. A few times a yeti or an elf had come in to check on him, the Guardian of Wonder had quickly sent them away, telling them to focus on getting the toys and gifts ready. Bunny stood leaning against the mantelpiece near his fellow Guardian, an uncertain look on his face while Jack stood alone on the opposite side of the room, trying to keep as far away from the fires as he could. Carefully, he watched the two Guardians, though his mind kept focusing on Tooth who had rushed back to her palace a couple of minutes after Pitch's departure, citing that she needed to check on her fairies. She had seemed so unsettled and lost that Jack had wanted to go after her but Sandy had stopped him, telling him that she needed some space but that he would check on her as he too left the Pole. North had allowed them to leave, in fact, Jack wondered if he had even noticed that they had actually left. Whatever Pitch had done to them had left them all in a disorientated state and Jack didn't know what to do.

"I do not understand," North spoke, shaking his head which he still held between his hands, his gaze cast at the wooden floor.

Bunny turned, his eyes focused on the lead Guardian. His nose twitched. "Pitch is back, mate," he replied and Jack noted that his voice sounded hollow. "What else is there to understand?"

"How can he be back? Why did Man in Moon not warn us?" North sounded just as empty as Bunny and Jack didn't like it. It just wasn't right.

Pushing himself away from the wall, the youngest Guardian spoke up, "What does it matter why? What's important is that we beat him again. We did it once, we can do it again." His voice came out eager, hoping to inspire the two into wanting to defeat Pitch once more. He was, however, disappointed with the reaction he received as neither North nor Bunny appeared to share his determination.

"How? Did you not notice Jack? He is a lot more powerful than before." Bunnymund shook his head, keeping his gaze diverted, folding his arms across his chest.

Jack frowned. This wasn't right. There was definitely something wrong. "Of course I noticed, but come on! What is the matter with you guys?" He looked at Bunny. "You're the Guardian of Hope but you're acting like you don't have any." He shook his head, taking a step forward, ice spreading out across the floor from his footstep. "We're Guardians. We put Pitch away once and we can do it again."

North lifted his head, his eyes fixed on the winter spirit. "It is not that simple, Jack," he said. "Pitch Black has returned for a reason and it cannot be good for not even Man in Moon was able to forewarn us."

Jack let out an exasperated groan. Had Pitch's return really affected them that much? But no, it couldn't have. They were fighters, warriors, something like this possibly couldn't have had this sort of impact on them. No, there had to be something else. His blue eyes blazed. When Pitch had touched them he must have done something to them, something to knock their confidence and faith, that's why he wasn't in the same slump as them – Pitch hadn't touched him. He needed a way to snap them out of it, but how? "What is the matter with you guys?!" he suddenly snapped, a sharp, cold gust of wind suddenly blowing across the room.

Both North and Bunny turned to Jack, surprised by his abrupt outburst. Bunny shivered. "Oi, what's with the cold wind, Frosty?"

"You guys, seriously, since Pitch left you guys haven't been right." Jack felt somewhat relieved to see that he had regained the pair's attention. "None of you have."

North looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean? You guys are Guardians, warriors, protectors, yet you're acting as if Pitch has already won!"

"But what else can we do? He is obviously a lot more powerful than before," North replied. "You are still young, Jack Frost, you think it is easy, but it is not. If Man in Moon did not foresee Pitch's return then how are we supposed to fight someone so powerful?"

Jack stared, aghast. Was he hearing right? Why did it sound like they had already given in? He shook his head. "This isn't you. How can you give in so easily? Yeah, from the looks of it Pitch is stronger, but that doesn't mean we're helpless. We're still Guardians and we have to fight to protect everyone from him."

"Are you not listening, Frosty? We can't fight him. It's hopeless." Bunny pushed himself away from the fireplace.

"Hopeless? How can it be hopeless? You're the Guardian of Hope!" Jack was stunned, he really couldn't comprehend what he was seeing and hearing. He decided to try and different approach. "Pitch has done something to you guys – when he touched you. That's why you're acting like this," he implored, desperately hoping that his words would sink in. "Pitch lives off fear, so whatever he did has escalated the fear you have inside yourselves. You're afraid that because Pitch is back there isn't anything we can do, but there is. You just have to believe in yourselves again. We beat him once, we can do it again. You just need to snap out of it!" Jack took a breath. He felt like he hadn't talk so much in a very long time and his throat suddenly felt very dry. He swallowed heavily.

"But Man in Moon did not –" North began.

Jack let out a frustrated groan, slamming his staff against the floor with an ear-piercing crack. Frost rapidly spread from the impact across the wood. Both North and Bunny jumped at the sound, surprised by the young Guardian's sudden outburst.

"Jack," North began, his eyes round, not with wonder, but with shock.

The winter spirit shook his head. He had had enough. If they weren't going to listen, then he would try someone who would. Without uttering a single word to his fellow Guardians, his anger welling up so much that he had to bite his tongue, he strolled across the room towards the open window. Summoning the wind, he allowed it to lift him up and carry him out of the North Pole, leaving behind two disheartened and shocked Guardians.

#

As he soared across the sky, Jack held out his free hand, feeling the cooling north wind between his fingers. Usually it was a method he used to help calm and relax him, but it didn't work this time. He couldn't fathom what had happened. Had Pitch really been able to affect them that much? He knew that whatever was wrong was Pitch's doing. It was the only thing that made sense – everyone except for him had been touched by the Bogeyman and all of them were showing signs of being lost and sullen apart from him. His other hand gripped the staff tightly, his knuckles straining against the skin.

He had no idea where he was going. Tooth and Sandy were a lot more level-headed than North or Bunny, so he hoped that they would be easier to bring back to normal, but he didn't know where either of them were. Tooth, he assumed, was probably at the Tooth Palace but he wasn't sure and as for Sandy, well, he had no idea where the little Sandman would be. He also didn't know who he wanted to talk to. He thought it might be easier to get through to Sandy, but he really wanted to see Tooth and make sure that she was alright. He could still remember how she had trembled when he had caught her – along with the smoothness of her feathers and he found that he missed that feeling, but he pushed those thought to the back of his mind. Now wasn't the time for things like that.

He knew that the wind would be able to carry him to either of them, but he couldn't decide who to go to first. He thought it would be better to try and see them individually. Something told him that part of the reason why it had been difficult getting through to North and Bunny was because he was dealing with the two of them and that their fears were bouncing off of each other, making them harder to disperse. Maybe seeing either Tooth or Sandy alone would make it easier for him? He sighed, his fingers flexing against the current.

The sky around him was lightening, a golden-blue hue with tinges of soft pink spreading all around him signalling the arrival of day. His eyebrows knitted together. Wherever the wind was taking him was obviously day. _Wait_… a thought hit him. The continent of Asia… it would be day there… and that's where Tooth lived. He inwardly kicked himself. Mentally he had been hoping to come across Sandy but it appeared that the wind had picked up on his subconscious emotions and had decided to take him to Tooth instead.

He swallowed, hard. He had no idea what was going on with his emotions when it came to her lately. Increasingly he had found himself longing for her company, taking quick peaks at her when no one was watching, thinking about her more and more, fixating on the smoothness of her feathers beneath his fingertips. He shook his head fiercely. He was doing it again. No wonder the wind had taken him to her; it was probably fed up on him thinking about her constantly.

He swallowed once more upon seeing the mighty Tooth Palace emerge from between the pink and gold tinted clouds and mentally cursed the wind from having brought him there. But, of course, he wanted to see her regardless of what else was going on – another thing he found himself increasingly doing. Maybe he should ask North or Sandy what it all meant once this thing with Pitch was over. There was no point asking the Easter Kangaroo and to talk to Tooth about it, well, that was just plain embarrassing. At least North and Sandy would listen and, hopefully, offer advice and tell him what it all meant.

A smile crossed his face as he etched closer to the palace, the sounds of countless of flapping wings and squeaks of voices resonating from within. Despite their eccentricities and fainting whenever he was around, Jack couldn't help but have a soft spot for Tooth's fairies. They were friendly, sweet and helpful just like Tooth. Jack shook his head. _Of course they're like Tooth. They're a part of her_, he reminded himself before he could get carried away again with thoughts of the Tooth Fairy.

As he approached the palace, a mini fairy appeared in front of him_. Probably on its way to collect a tooth_, Jack thought. However, as soon as the little fairy saw the winter spirit, it gave a startled squeak, its eyes widening as it hovered, unmoving, in the air before it shook its head and darted back towards the palace, a dreamy smile now on its face. Jack let out a sigh, though he couldn't stop the small smile from forming. It looked like his presence wasn't going to go unnoticed by them then.

Landing on one of the large balconies that adorned the outside of the palace, the bustle inside increased and moments later, there was a deafening sound of beating wings and squeaks as a swarm of blue-green suddenly emerged, engulfing Jack as the mini fairies tried to get close to him. Jack staggered back a couple of paces from the sheer ferocity but let out a laugh. He couldn't help it. The fairies were just having some fun and since he was the Guardian of Fun, how could he devoid them of it?

The fairies were careful as they snuggled close to Jack, making sure not to prick him with their needle-like beaks, though they weren't always successful and would quickly squeak out apologies, forgetting that he couldn't understand them (or hear them for that matter over all the noise). They did, however, push each other out of the way in order to get close to young Guardian, trying hard not to let his coldness affect them.

"What is going on out here?!"

Despite all of the noise, Tooth's voice carried clearly across it all and Jack gulped as he realised he had distracted the fairies – again.

While Jack had clearly heard her, it appeared that her fairies hadn't, or they were choosing to ignore her in their desperation to see him, which meant that he was going to be in trouble. He swallowed again and tried to gently push the fairies off of him, but his attempts were futile as it made them even more excited. Yep, he was defiantly going to be in trouble.

Tooth stared at the bizarre scene before her, a frown on her face. She knew that Jack was in the middle of the mass of fairies and while she knew how excited they got whenever he visited, she had never seen them act like this before. It was partly the reason why she didn't want Jack to visit all the time; the fairies had a job to do but every time he came around, they would automatically forget and act like school children experiencing their first crush. This thought made Tooth blush slightly despite herself, since she knew they were only acting out her unspoken emotions towards him, though she hoped that she, herself, would never act like that towards him since she found their antics quite annoying sometimes – like now.

"Girls!" She clapped her petite hands together, sharply and loudly in an attempt to alert them to her presence, as her feathers ruffled. She was not impressed. Her voice, however, was once more lost amongst the sea of beating wings and squeaking.

"Uh, fairies," Jack began, attempting to help Tooth, hoping that if the fairies weren't listening to her, then they might listen to him, "I think you need to go back to work now."

The mini fairies continued in the attempts to be close to the winter spirit, pushing each other out of the way with adamant squeaks. Some were shivering from the cold but refused to move while others flew close to his face, hoping to see his clear blue eyes or sparkling white teeth.

Jack involuntarily winced from the close contact and knowing that they were becoming a burden to each other, he tried to remind them of their job once more, only this time he used a different tactic. The air grew increasingly colder and all of the fairies began to shiver. "Hey, you've got a job to do remember," he reminded them. "Those teeth aren't going to collect themselves and I don't think Tooth is going to be too happy."

In unison, all of the fairies gasped and flocked away from him, turning to see the disapproving form of Tooth, as the cold air automatically disappeared. Instantly the squeaking started up as they apologised to the Tooth Fairy, but she shook her head sadly and all of the fairies deflated knowing they had upset her.

"You're going to have to work twice as hard now," she said, her voice emotionless. She wasn't angry with them since she knew that they couldn't help but themselves, but she was disappointed. They had an important job and it seemed that they had just forgotten about it the second Jack had arrived. They were supposed to know better. Actually, that was a lie. She was angry, just not at them. She was angry at herself because she knew that it was because of her that her fairies acted as they did, but she had so little control of her feelings when it came down to the winter spirit standing before her.

Knowing that she was not only upset but right, the miniature fairies quickly departed, some out into the world while others retreated back into the palace to their respective jobs. Tooth let out a heavy sigh as she watched them leave.

Jack shuffled his feet nervously against the gold patterned floor, a light covering of ice spreading across it absentmindedly. He could tell that she wasn't happy. It was obvious and it was all because of him. "Tooth," he began, not looking up at her, "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," she replied with another sigh, only this time it was softer than before. Her feathers smoothed themselves out.

Jack looked at her, surprised. He had distracted her fairies – again. How could she not blame him?

"You can't help how they act when you're around," she continued, clasping her hands together. "They should know better." She gave him a small smile, one, he noted, that didn't meet her eyes making him wonder if she was still affected by whatever Pitch had done, reminding him of why he was there in the first place. She flew closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, something that was becoming an increasing habit for her. "What are you doing here?"

"I, uh, came to see you," he replied, still overcoming the fact that she wasn't angry at him.

She tilted her head to one side. "Why?"

"I, uh…" Seriously, why was he stammering? He swallowed, feeling her eyes on him. "I, uh, just wanted to make sure you were alright." What was the matter with him? It was just Tooth, Tooth with her amethyst eyes watching him, her petite gentle hand on his shoulder, her close proximity. He closed his eyes tightly for the briefest of moments. _Snap out of it, Jack,_ he chastised himself.

Tooth, however, appeared oblivious to his inner turmoil. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Her voice snapped him back to reality. "That stuff with Pitch. You were a bit out of it after he touched you. I wanted to make sure you were alright."

Her eyes widened and she took an intake of breath. He had come to make sure she was alright. He had been worried about her?

Jack noticed her expression and hastily added, "Bunny and North were acting really weird, like they had given up and they wouldn't listen when I said about fighting Pitch, so I thought I'd come a check that you and Sandy were alright as well." The words came out quick and fast, a torrent of unstoppable vocabulary.

"Oh." She felt herself deflated slightly. He had only come out of duty. Her head suddenly felt woozy, her vision swaying and she closed her eyes in an attempt to keep it at bay. Of course that was the only reason for him to come and see her, nothing more.

Jack realised his mistake, that his words had made it seem that he hadn't been worried about her. "I didn't mean it like that," he quickly said. "It's just right after Pitch touched you and I had hold of you, you were shaking and you then left so quickly that I wanted to make sure you were alright." He inwardly groaned. Now it seemed like he was being overprotective. He tried again. "What I mean is…"

Tooth opened her eyes, glad that her wooziness had abated, and shook her head. "It's alright," she said softly, knowing what he meant, that he had come out of concern as a fellow Guardian. "I understand."

Jack paused, his mouth open as he gaped at her. He quickly shut his mouth and swallowed. "Are you alright?" He hoped so seeing as she didn't seem as down and depressed as North and Bunny. Maybe he was right in thinking that whatever it was that Pitch had done had been amplified because the two of them had been together.

She nodded, her fingers grasping his shoulder. "I'm fine." It was another lie. Ever since Pitch had touched her, she hadn't felt right, but Jack didn't need to worry about that.

Jack nodded dumbly, his mind distracted by her warm fingers which sent a strange yet oddly satisfying tingling feeling throughout his body. "I, uh, I should go then." Again with the stumbling. "I'd, uh, better check on Sandy, yeah." He didn't want to leave but his mind didn't appear to be focusing properly and his mouth was speaking without any direction.

"Oh." Tooth was crestfallen at this. She had hoped that Jack would stay a bit longer, but then that would be selfish of her. She still had her job to do and of course he needed to check on Sandy. She couldn't ask him to stay longer.

Jack noticed the disappointed look on her face. He knew he had to check on Sandy, but he didn't want to leave the Tooth Fairy before him. She still looked lost and maybe, just maybe, he could actually find out what it was that Pitch had done to them. He didn't feel like trying to decipher Sandy's symbols but he could clearly understand Tooth's words most of the time. He would be killing two birds with one stone – metaphorically of course – since he could find out what Pitch had done whilst also keeping an eye on Tooth. He cleared his throat. "Maybe I could stick around for a little bit longer," he suggested. "You know, help out a little bit seeing as I distracted your fairies."

Tooth's fingers clenched his shoulder once more as a small smile crossed her face. "Okay," she said. She removed her hand from his shoulder, instantly missing the cooling sensation and fluttered away from him, heading back inside the palace.

Jack paused for a moment and placed his hand against the shoulder she had grasped. He too missed the warmth of her hand there. He shook his head, ridding himself of those thoughts and followed her inside, a small smile forming as he realised that he was able to spend a little bit longer in her company.

#

The Bennett household was quiet. The vast majority of the house was engulfed in darkness as the two children slept soundly in their rooms.

In the dimly-lit front room, Mrs Bennett sat watching the television, the volume low so as not to disturb her sleeping children. A warm cup of cocoa was between her hands and a blanket thrown over her shoulders. Her gaze was fixed on the television while one ear listened out for any sounds from her children, particularly Sophie was continued to have bad dreams. She was oblivious to the dark shadow that crept over her shoulder for the tiniest of moments, though she felt a sudden coldness within the room and wrapped the blanket around her tighter, blaming the December weather.

The black shadow withdrew from the woman and slid like a snake across the carpet towards the stairs of the house. It quickly slid up them and emerged in the dark hallway, entering the first room it came to, sliding under the closed door. Once in the room, the shadow paused and brought itself together in the centre of the carpet before jerking upwards and forming a towering black figure.

Yellow eyes glowed in the darkness as the figure approached the bed where a young boy with an unruly tuft of brown hair was sleeping. With a wave of his hand across the boy's head, golden sand emerged, forming into a group of children having a snowball fight. The figure rolled his eyes and let out a snort. With another flick of his hand, the golden figures turned to black before disappearing, draining away like water, leaving the figure of the boy all alone. The dream-boy began to cry while his human counterpart began to squirm and sob in his sleep. The figure smiled as he forced his way into the nightmare he was creating for the youngster, creating a smaller version of his own being. The child gasped upon seeing the figure in his dream and tried to run away but the figure grabbed hold of him with one hand, holding him tightly in his grip.

Jamie began to squirm uncontrollably, thrashing about in his bed as whimpers were torn from his throat.

The figure smiled. Oh how he loved to see this sort of reaction when he tormented others. It gave him so much pleasure.

The towering person in the dream continued to hold the struggling Jamie as a long knife appeared in his free hand. With one swift, precise movement, the knife was shoved deep into Jamie's stomach, making him arch forward.

The towering form's smile widened.

Jamie's eyes shot open as a loud, strangled gasp escaped his lips.

The figure grabbed hold of Jamie's throat, the child's eyes rolling, forcing him into the pillow and with a puff, the boy vanished, the blankets falling limply onto the bed.

Pitch Black smiled widely. He turned his head towards the door, knowing that in the other bedroom lay another sleeping child.


	7. A Shadow on the Soul

Fear…

Pain…

Panic…

Horror…

Heartbreak…

Despair…

Disbelief…

Confusion…

Fear…

Standing in the dark hallway, the only light coming from two of the bedrooms, Mrs Bennett was possessed by a range of emotions but fear was at the cusp of it all. Her heart was beating unbearably painfully against her chest, threatening to burst. She placed a shaking hand against her chest in a futile attempt to calm it. Her entire body was trembling like a lone leaf in a brisk wind and she placed her free hand against the doorframe, an attempt at steadying herself.

Her eyes were red-rimmed and glassy, more tears threatening to spill, and she stared unseeing into the empty bedroom where a few short hours earlier her daughter, her baby daughter, had been sleeping. Her chest constricted painfully, an unbearable weight on her chest and her staggered breath caught in her throat, a sob escaping her. She didn't understand. She just didn't understand.

Yellow tape crisscrossed the doorway, preventing her from entering.

Her child's – no, her _children's_ rooms were crime scenes.

She hadn't just lost one of them. She had lost both.

She replayed the events in her mind. She had recalled them enough times now, having to go over ever detail with the police. She had come upstairs at half past ten to get ready for bed and had stopped to check on her children as she always did. She had opened Jamie's door and stepped inside. His bed was empty. At first she thought nothing of it, he might have gone to the bathroom, but no, that room was vacant. Maybe he was with Sophie. It was then as she entered her daughter's room that she realised something was wrong, very wrong. Sophie's bed was empty too.

Fresh tears fell from her eyes. She couldn't understand it. What had happened? Where were her children?

She had searched the house, repeatedly calling out their names. She had searched the garden, she had had Abby sniff for their scents but nothing. Her children had disappeared into the night like ghosts. Nothing had been touched. The windows were still closed and locked. The ruffled bed sheets and impressions on their pillows were the only indications that her children had been sleeping in their beds.

The police hadn't been any help. No signs of forced entry. The front and back doors along with the windows all lock. No evidence that the children had been taken from the house. But they also couldn't find them in the house either. It was a complete mystery to them. They had asked her if there was a chance that they'd wonder off on their own (no, there definitely wasn't) or if there was a chance their father had taken them. She had resisted the urge to scoff at that – she would have done had the circumstances been different, because she knew without a shadow of a doubt that there was no way their father would have taken them seeing as he lived on the other side of the country and hadn't bothered with them since the divorce. The officers made their notes and cordoned off their bedrooms, telling her a forensic team would be there in the morning and that the best thing for her to do was to sleep.

But she couldn't.

How was she supposed to sleep when her children were missing?

How was she supposed to do anything?

It had only been a few short hours (which had felt like an eternity) since she had realised they'd disappeared and the sun was slowly beginning to rise, streaks of faint gold beginning to taint the darkness, but she could already feel as if the light had gone from her life. Her children were gone and she felt empty, no happiness, no light. It had all vanished the second she realised that her children were gone, they were the lights of her life, the thing that kept her going, but those lights had been extinguished and she didn't know why. It was as if a shadow had encompassed the house and her along with it.

She sniffed loudly, wiping the falling, salty tears away with the back of her hand. Looking into Sophie's room, which was illuminated with the dull artificial light from the ceiling lights that the police officer had turned on and she couldn't bring herself to turn off – doing so would mean that her daughter was truly gone - a discarded blue rabbit toy with long floppy ears caught her eyes. She blinked. It was Sophie's favourite cuddly toy, a tatty thing the youngster had found at a yard sale a while ago and it was something she never went anywhere without. Her breath hitched in her throat, her hand clasping her chest tightly. She could barely breathe. That was it. That was how she knew. Sophie wouldn't have gone anywhere without him, which meant she hadn't gone willingly. Her damp eyes widened. Someone had come and snatched her children away. But why?

Her eyes still fixed on the toy, she heard the soft padding of feet and felt a wet nose nuzzle her leg. It was enough to set her off again, the tears falling freely and she sunk to the floor, one hand covering her mouth while the other gripped Abby's smooth fur. She tilted her head and buried it into the dog's fur, sobbing for the loss of her children.

What was she supposed to do without her children?

#

Jack stared around him in awe as he followed Tooth through the many hallways of the palace. Each hallway was decorated almost exactly as the last, with sparkling gold walls and high arched ceilings, each with intricate designs of what, when he had looked closer, appeared to be teeth and fairies, though there were subtle differences in the designs that he noticed. It was almost as if they were telling a story. The floors appeared to be made of a pearly, translucent marble and the way the light bounced off of it, reflecting a multitude of soft colours reminded him of Tooth's wings which he could see reflected on the surface and he made sure not to allow his frost to taint the beauty of the hallways.

The Tooth Fairy was a foot in front of him and was, to his great surprise, very quiet. Almost silent in fact and it troubled him. In all of the time that he had known her, she had never been this quiet. He had never been this far into the palace before and had expected her to be letting off a stream of facts about her home. But she wasn't and this made Jack wonder if her reassurances that she was alright earlier had been a lie. A frown crossed his pale lips. Why would she lie?

He paused, his footsteps ceasing. What had Pitch done to them?

Hearing Jack stop, Tooth turned, her eyes narrowed slightly with confusion. "Jack?" He didn't reply, his gaze fixed on the marble floor. She fluttered closer, worry etching through her. "Jack, are you alright?" She reached out and clasped his cold shoulder.

Jack's eyes snapped up, meeting hers. Ice blue and light amethyst gazed at each other, searching for answers, until Tooth suddenly blinked and Jack cleared his throat, thrown out of the trance. "What's going on?"

Tooth stared. "What?"

Jack's eyes fixed on hers once more. "What did he do?"

Tooth blinked, taken aback for a moment. A small smile crossed her face. "He? What are you talking about?" She let out a short laugh, one that didn't meet the sudden unnerved look in her eyes as she waved her other hand in an attempt to dismiss what he had said. Of course she knew exactly what he was talking about but she still couldn't bring herself to mention it. She didn't understand exactly what it was Pitch had done to her so how was she supposed to explain it to him?

Jack's eyes narrowed. She was lying, he could tell. He could see it in her eyes. Something wasn't right. "You know, Tooth," he replied, stepping forward, forcing her to fly back. He placed a hand on hers, the one that was gripping his shoulder. He felt her tense at his touch. "I can see it in your eyes, that there's something wrong. What did he do?"

In a flash her smile faded and she looked down. _Stupid eyes_, she thought. But she was surprised that he had noticed and she inwardly kicked herself for not having been her usual out-going self. _Of course he's going to notice if you're not twittering away like usual_. But how was she supposed to tell him what was going on, what it felt like inside? Whatever Pitch had done, it felt like it was eating away at her, consuming her. But would he understand? He didn't have this increasing feeling of… she didn't know what it was, building up inside of her like a fire. How could he understand? But then again, she needed to voice what she was feeling. She couldn't talk to the fairies, they wouldn't understand it, but she knew they were beginning to feel it; they were a part of her of course, even though she tried to hide it as much as she could, so they wouldn't become concerned and distracted. She couldn't, wouldn't, voice everything that was troubling her since some of it was to do with him, but maybe it would be good to talk to him about whatever it was Pitch had done.

"Tooth?"

His voice cut through her thoughts, his concern telling her that she had been silent for too long. "Not here," she murmured, her eyes not meeting his. She didn't want any of the fairies to overhear and panic.

"Okay," Jack hesitantly replied, not sure if this was a good thing or not. He began to remove his hand from on top of hers, but she quickly grasped it with the hand that had been touching his shoulder. He allowed her to lead him though the corridors; glad that she couldn't see the faint blue blush that had spread across his cheeks. Wait, why was he blushing? He shook his head. He seriously needed to talk to North or Sandy about what was going on with him. But that was for later, he had to focus on finding out what was wrong with Tooth and the others first.

The pair remained silent as they walked through the golden hallways of the palace. Jack wondered where she was taking him. He assumed that it must be somewhere important since they were walking deeper and deeper into the palace and they hadn't come across a mini fairy in a while. He wanted to ask but kept quiet. He would find out eventually.

And he was right.

A few short minutes later they arrived in front of a pair of large golden doors. Like the walls, there was an engraving on them and as Jack got closer, he realised that it was similar to Tooth's mural; her on one door flying above a group of children who were on the other, holding out their hands towards her. The engraving was really quite beautiful and painstakingly made, with each of her feathers carefully crafted into the door.

_It really is something_, Jack mused, looking up at it. He glanced over at Tooth who was looking at with admiration, a small, genuine smile on her lips as she placed a hand over her heart. "Are you alright?" he asked after she let out a heavy sigh.

She turned to him. "Yes," she replied. "It's just this room; it holds a lot of memories." Her voice was quiet, barely above a whisper.

Jack nodded in response, his gaze resting back on the door. "Where are we?" Tooth's words filled him with even more curiosity.

"I'll show you." She placed her hand in the middle of the doors. The thin line where they met glowed as she removed her hand and flew back a couple of paces.

With abated breath, the two watched as the giant gold doors swung open, revealing a dark room.

Jack swallowed. This hadn't been what he had been expecting. He looked expectantly at Tooth flew over to him and picked up his hand, holding it between hers. "Come."

Swallowing down his nervousness, he allowed himself to be lead, knowing that there wouldn't be anything bad on the other side of the doors. He _was_ in the Tooth Palace after all.

As soon as Tooth stepped over the threshold, the room was engulfed in a soft light and Jack couldn't stop the gasp that escaped his lips. He was in a cavernous room, the walls adorned with small wooden boxes. He looked around in awe. There were countless boxes reaching high up to the ceiling and far into the abyss of the room beyond his sight. "Where are we?"

Tooth stopped and turned to him. "This where all the teeth are kept of those that are no longer alive." She let go of his hand and flew over to one of the walls and placed her hand on one of the boxes tenderly.

The winter spirit watched her. _No longer alive… So that's what she meant about the memories._ He looked around. _There must be billions…_ He shook his head. It was hard to believe that all of the teeth of so many people were all there. "Are yours here?" he asked. His voice was quiet but it echoed around the cavernous room.

Not facing him, she shook her head. "There wasn't anyone to collect mine."

"Oh." Jack looked away, suddenly embarrassed. _Of course hers wouldn't be here_, he chastised himself. _She was – is – the first Tooth Fairy_. "Sorry."

Tooth turned, her soft eyes fixing on him. _Of course he wouldn't know_. She didn't blame him for his question, it was an honest mistake to make and from his posture, she could tell that he was mentally kicking himself for the slip up. She flew over to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Jack."

Jack lifted his head, blue meeting amethyst once more. He blinked, surprised at the gentleness in her eyes, no hint of anger at all but he could still the sadness in them.

"I forget that I had a life before…" She let out a sigh, her eyes quickly scanning her body. "This."

"What were you like before?" He instantly regretted the question as soon as it left his lips.

Tooth blinked and Jack noticed that the sadness in her eyes intensified, but she smiled at him. "Not now," she said lightly. "It's a long and unpleasant story."

Jack nodded, not wanting to press her for details hearing the distance in her voice. Her words cast a feeling of dread through him, one telling him that maybe it was a story that he didn't want to hear. He decided to change the subject somewhat. "So is this where my teeth were kept?"

This made Tooth smile. "You still have them don't you," she said, referring to the box that contained his baby teeth, the box that he kept hidden near the lake in Burgess.

His eyes twinkled as he smiled sheepishly at her. "I keep forgetting to return them."

She shook her head. "They're yours." She paused and let out a sigh. "I should have given them to you long ago, but… but I didn't know that you'd lost your memories. I should have, I am supposed to be the Guardian of Memories after all. I–"

"Tooth, it's alright," Jack told her firmly. They had had this conversation several times since and each time had reaffirmed the fact that he didn't blame her for that, how could he? She had kept them safe and that was what mattered in the end.

"But I–"

He placed his hand on top of hers, which was still clasping his shoulder and he was surprised to still feel warmth radiating from it and when she didn't flinch from his touch, he wondered whether or not she could actually feel his cold. "It's alright." His eyes fixed on hers, showing her that he meant it.

"I'm still sorry though," she said.

This made Jack smile at her determination but he knew that he would never blame her for any of it. "So how come your fairies don't come down here?"

"This room is important. I would rather take care of it myself," she replied, "especially after Pitch broke in here." She let out a shudder and Jack knew it was from the memory of that day rather than the cold. "He should never have… these memories… he had no right…" Her voice kept trailing off, her thoughts fusing together in her words and Jack understood why. The items in this room were sacred. Pitch should never have stolen them.

"Is that why you wanted to talk to me in here? Because the fairies won't disturb us?"

The Tooth Fairy paused, her wing beats faltering for the briefest of moments. She had forgotten why she had brought Jack down here, talking to him that pushed those feelings of uncertainty and doubt away, but the mentioning of Pitch's name suddenly brought those feelings back to the surface. She stumbled. She knew he was going to press for details again. "Yes. They won't disturb us while we're in here. They know better." A wave of nervousness coursed through her and she suddenly became aware of the fact that Jack's hand was on top of hers, which was still clasping his shoulder. She hadn't realised, hadn't sensed the cold and she quickly snapped her hand back, clasping her hands together as her cheeks turned red.

The sudden movement startled the young Guardian as he hadn't expected it. "Sorry," he murmured, assuming that the movement was due to his coldness, but she shook her head.

"It's alright."

Jack swallowed, a wave of tension flowing between the two. It was something he didn't like, whatever was going on, whatever was causing this was because of Pitch and he had to know what he had done. He had to fix it. His blue eyes were fixed on the fairy. "I need to know, Tooth. I need to know what he did."

Tooth's eyes instantly diverted from him. "It's nothing."

Jack frowned. Why was it that every time he brought up what Pitch had done back at the North Pole she brushed it off? Pitch had done something to the four of them and he had to know. Why wasn't she letting him in? "Pitch did something to you guys. I need to know Tooth."

"It's not important." How was she supposed to tell him that it felt like something was eating away at her, at her very core?

"Please Tooth," the winter spirit pleaded. "Let me help you."

Tooth looked at him, her eyes round. She had never heard him speak like that before, it almost unnerved her. He wasn't supposed to beg, it wasn't right. She bit her lower lip. _Let me help you_. He wanted to help her. He willingly wanted to help her overcome this darkness that was slowly consuming her. But still, she couldn't find herself to form those words. Jack took a step closer to her and she could feel his coldness through her feathers.

He reached out and placed an icy hand over her clasped ones and he was grateful for the fact that she didn't withdraw from him. "Tooth…" he implored.

Her amethyst eyes met his and she focused on their gentleness as she opened her mouth. "Cold," she whispered and for a moment Jack thought that she was referring to him until she continued. "I could feel a coldness in me. I could feel it in my mind, my heart, throughout my entire being. It wasn't like what I felt from you. No, it was different. There was no warmth behind it, it was just cold and empty but I could feel it spreading throughout my entire body like a fire – it still is." She shook her head. "It's weird. At times, like now when I'm talking to you, I don't feel it. I know its there, but I feel like me. But most of the time..." She shook her head once and continued to keep her eyes fixed on his, a way of keeping her steady. "It's like there's something on my soul, a shadow, something so dark that it just consumes everything. I tried to fight it, but it keeps spreading and I can feel it, digging deeper and deeper. It brings every bad and negative thought to the surface, every fear, making me doubt everything I know as it pushes everything else away. I can't think of anything good, because when I do…" She blinked hard. "It hurts Jack. It hurts."

Jack listened and he heard. He felt a heavy pang on his heart as he listened to her whispers. Without another word, he pulled Tooth into his arms, her head resting on his shoulder. It was a gesture that surprised the two of them since touch was still something Jack wasn't overly keen on – small gestures such as the touch of a hand or shoulder were fine, but big acts like this… But it was Tooth and she needed it, he knew she needed it and as soon as she was in his arms, he knew he had made the right move – the action, Tooth in his arms, it felt right. Whatever Pitch had done, it sounded like he had made them loose focus and cast doubt over them, amplifying their fear. She needed to know that he was there and that he was there for her. He was going to fix this. He was going to make Pitch pay for what he had done to them, to her.

#

Flying across the starlit night sky in his golden airplane, a pair of aviator goggles resting atop his head, Sandy sighed heavily. He could feel that there was something wrong. He wasn't quite sure what it was, but it felt as if there was something deep within him that wasn't right. He frowned and looked over the side of his plane at the many golden threads that were reaching into the homes far below him. He wrinkled his nose.

Why did he get the feeling that his dream sand wasn't doing its job?

It was a feeling that he had been getting all night along with getting the impression that something wasn't quite right deep inside of him. Usually he could feel the happiness that his dreams brought, the distractions of normal life, but tonight, for some reason, while he could still feel that happiness, it didn't feel as powerful as it usually it, almost as if there was something blocking them. He thought back to the moment when Pitch had touched him and the sudden hollowness he had felt deep within him before the Bogeyman had retracted his hand. He frowned once more. He hadn't had this feeling before, not ever, this feeling of doubt that he wasn't doing his job properly, that his dream sand wasn't as powerful as it should be. Was Pitch the cause of this? He shook his head. The Nightmare King couldn't be that powerful, could he? Was he powerful enough to send these sorts of feelings into a Guardian? He looked across at the silver moon. _Is there something he isn't telling us,_ the Sandman wondered, since the Man in the Moon hadn't informed them of anything since before Pitch's return.

Sandy suddenly paused, a thought hitting him. Wait… was he the only one feeling like this? Pitch had touched the others well, well minus Jack, so could it be possible that they were going through something similar? If so, then was it all part of Pitch's plan? He adjusted his goggles over his eyes, turning his plane in the direction of the North Pole as he cast an enormous ball of golden sand, tossing it high into the sky, the dream threads descending from it, reaching the far corners of the land. Without looking back, the little Guardian tore across the skies towards his destination.

The sun was high in the sky as the oldest Guardian arrived at the North Pole, making the crisp, untouched snow and ice sparkle a multitude of colours with its golden glow. Flying into the Globe room, he circumferenced the giant sphere a few times, descending as he did so before leaping from the plane which exploded into millions of golden grains, landing perfectly onto the marbled floor, tossing away the goggles as he did so. He arms held up in a finishing move, he blinked as his eyes rested on North and Bunny and his arms fell quickly to his sides.

This is not what he had expected.

North was slumped in an overstuffed armchair next to a roaring fire, his head slumped to one side. Sandy squinted as he looked at the large Russian whose normally sparkling eyes appeared lifeless as they stared unseeing. The sight began to unnerve the small Guardian. He had expected to find the mighty Guardian ordering the yetis around in his determination to get things ready for Christmas not sitting down and staring into space. There were a couple of elves next to him, trying in vain to get North up.

Sandy turned his head to look at Bunny who was hunched in a corner surrounded by a multitude of half painted eggs. The Sandman tilted his head to one side, unsure as to what he was seeing; it looked as if the Easter Bunny had shrunk slightly but since the rabbit was sat on his haunches, he couldn't tell. He shook his head. If what he was seeing was right, then it defiantly wasn't good – Bunny had a tendency to shrink and revert back to a cute little rabbit when he lost hope and from the looks of it, that's where he was heading.

Forgetting his own insecurities, Sandy felt determination rise inside of him. He had to snap the other two Guardians out of whatever slump they had fallen in to.

Floating over to North, ignoring the two elves, one of whom was jumping up and down on the man's arm while the other tugged on his foot, he peered at his face and frowned. He tilted his head to one side as other Guardian remained unresponsive. Leaning back, he grabbed the elf that was still jumping on North's arm and shook him in front of his face so that the elf's hat jingled. North blinked and Sandy let out a sigh of relief. The elf pulling on North's foot stopped and lifted its head.

"Ah, Sandy…" North's voice came out as a monotone mumble. "It won't be ready. Nothing will be ready. Christmas… not far… not ready… no… thing…" His voice trailed off and Sandy's shoulders slumped while the elf in his hand looked crestfallen.

The other elf tugged on his hand and he looked down. The little elf looked up at him and shook its head sadly, the bell on its hat jingling with the movement, telling him that nobody seemed to be able to get through to the Russian. Sandy sighed and looked over at Bunny, who was still painting the eggs. That meant he wouldn't be able to get through to him either.

It looked as if Pitch had affected them as well – a lot, which meant Tooth was also affected. But Jack wasn't.

Sandy's face lit up, a light bulb appearing above his head. Jack was affected which meant that maybe the newest Guardian would be able to help him out. He paused, but where was Jack? If the youngest Guardian had come to the same conclusion as him, that Pitch had done something to them, then he would probably try to find out what, which meant that if he wasn't here, then he had to be with Tooth at her palace. He couldn't stop the small smile from crossing his face at that thought. Of course Jack would go there; he had begun to see the way the young spirit had started to look at her. He knew Jack had no idea why he kept shooting her glances, but seeing as they were the same looks Tooth would cast at him (and he knew exactly how she felt), it was pretty obvious. He shook his head, there would time for him to get the two of them together later. First he had to get the two of them back here and try and determine what exactly was going on.

He looked up at the Globe and his eyes widened. Some of the lights had disappeared. The Globe was still teeming with the lights of billions of believers, but some of them had gone out, he could sense it. Not due to age, no it was something different. It was like last time. Children were beginning to stop believing again. He cast his eyes up at the moon and the glimmer of a shadow that crossed the silvery surface told him all that he need to know.

He had to get Jack and Tooth back here as quickly as possible.

* * *

**A/N: Credit for the beginning of this chapter goes to believeitornotimamom, whose story _A Little Big Word_ inspired the scene which deals with the outcome of Mrs Bennett discovering that her children are missing. This is something I always wondered about since we never see or read about the impact it has on the parents when their children go missing or on adventures in these kinds of stories.**


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